Kidnapped
by rexlover180
Summary: Alfred is the only survivor of a ship that was attacked by pirates. When he gets taken aboard the ship, he finds himself completely entranced by someone he had only dreamed of. Based off Little Mermaid, USUK, one-sided RusAme
1. Sunk

The sea. It's a beautiful mistress that never seems to end. It's the best thing in the world and life is always at its best in the sea.

Arthur sighed happily. The sun was high in the sky, and there was not a single cloud. A slight breeze whipped past his face. A perfect day to be sailing…

He would enjoy it so much more if only he were captain.

Arthur was soon swept out of his daydream by orders being barked at him. Arthur obeyed the order, grabbing hold of a nearby rope and pulling hard on it. Arthur looked over to the starboard side of the ship, where they were apparently turning. It looked like there was a speck in the distance. As they got closer, the speck formed into the shape of a ship.

But this wasn't just any ship. It looked like it belonged to the Royal Navy. Arthur couldn't hide a smile growing on his face. Just about the only thing he had in common with the other scurvy-ridden idiots on this ship was their hatred for the Royal Navy. Arthur couldn't wait to load the cannons that would be aimed right at that ship. And then set off that lovely charge.

"Oi, which port's right next to here?" a crew mate asked loudly to the others.

"I think we're gettin' close to America," another one said. "Must be one of them towns' navy. They're recruiting there now, I guess."

"So that means that there will be fresh blood on that ship," the familiar French voice of the first mate chimed in and Arthur grimaced. He decided not to even look up at the man, he knew him well enough. He always had bouncing, long, blonde hair and a flamboyant and bright outfit on. He was the most annoying person in the world to Arthur, but Francis never seemed to get the hint that he hated him.

"Don't tell me you're going to kidnap another boy toy," Arthur sighed.

"Well, I must!" Francis said happily. "I _did_ break the last one."

"It's not breaking if he runs away," Arthur pointed out bluntly. "And don't you find it the slightest bit odd that you like men?"

"Don't you find it odd that you don't?" Francis asked flirtatiously and Arthur shivered.

"BELOW DECKS! NOW!" the booming voice of the captain, Antonio, nearly made Arthur jump 10 feet in the air. Arthur took a quick glance up at the captain. He was, like always, adorned in his red jacket with gold trim and matching hat that covered up his chocolate brown hair and slightly his green eyes.

Arthur quickly departed with most of the crew into the darkness that was below decks. He scurried over to a cannon on the starboard side, where the ship was going to be coming up. He worked fast, like the other crew mates, loading the cannon with the gunpowder and the cannonball.

Arthur looked up after he was finished, through the hole in front of the cannon to steal a quick look at the other ship. He didn't even have to look at it for a second before he found what was probably the most fascinating thing Arthur had ever seen. No, he wasn't fascinating. He was gorgeous, he was beautiful.

He had hair the color of the bright sun shining above his head, one cute little strand sticking out of his forehead, and his eyes were the color of the gorgeous sea turning beneath them. His skin was tan, like he would lie out in the sun all day. Even though he bore the outfit of the Royal Navy, that only accented to his beauty. Arthur couldn't help but think that he had seen this man before. Somewhere in his best dreams, most likely.

Arthur could have gazed at this wonder of the world forever, but one world broke him out of his trance.

"FIRE!"

Arthur had to watch Alfred's beautiful face contort with shock as the ship was blown to smithereens.

* * *

Alfred desperately tried to breathe through his coughing as he clung desperately to a barrel. Being a human sucked. You couldn't breathe underwater (he learned that the hard way just a couple minutes ago) and swimming was merely impossible with those things called legs. He was incredibly lucky he had found that barrel, or he would have drowned. _That_ would not have turned out well.

The last thing he had seen before the ship was blown up was that damn pirate flag. He hated pirates. From the stories he had heard and even the things he had seen, pirates were horrible, vile people that did anything for money. As the hero, he would never allow people like that to exist. And he was busy on a mission at the time, too. He had to find someone, and fast.

Through Alfred's coughs, he heard the sound of a boat rowing through the water. He glanced up with slight hope it was a part of the crew on the ship he was just on, but that hope was shot down when he saw the people in it. There were three people. One of them was rowing and Alfred could only see the back of his head. But his hair was black and he wore an off-white, short sleeve shirt that did nothing to hide his massive tattoos that covered his tan, muscular arms. Then there was a man who had long, blonde hair and obnoxious, bright colored clothing. He was talking very annoyingly, and Alfred just guessed he wouldn't get along with him. He couldn't quite see the third person, though… The rower was in the way.

Alfred continued his coughing, trying to get his breathing under control again.

"You see, I knew he was alive!" an annoying weird accented voice sounded off and Alfred looked down at the water. It was tainted a dark color.

"I bloody well knew he was alive, frog!" a British voice snapped. Alfred knew that accent well. He would listen to people with that accent all the time.

Alfred didn't have to look up to know that the boat had stopped right in front of him. He refused to look up. These were pirates. He would rather die than be saved by pirates.

"You want to be a pirate, mon cher?" the odd voice asked seductively.

"No," Alfred's voice croaked.

"You know you want to be one~" the voice said seductively.

"I would rather die," Alfred managed out. His English was a little rusty from lack of use.

"That's not how you talk to someone who's been through so much," the British voice said and Alfred could have sworn he heard the sound of a hand smacking something. Alfred smiled. Before he knew it, a hand appeared in front of his face. For a pirate, the hand looked rather nice and well groomed. "Come on, lad. There are better ways to die."

Alfred's curiosity got the best of him and he looked up the arm to look at the face of the pirate. He nearly lost his grip on the barrel when he saw who it was. It was the man he had been searching for, the man he never expected to see in person ever again. This time he looked different, though, far more alive. His hair was a pretty blonde that practically shimmered in the light and his pretty green eyes reminded Alfred of some of the prettiest corral he had ever seen. But the corral did no justice compared to those wondrous emeralds before Alfred's eyes. The man was tanned from the hours in the sun that he most likely got every day as a pirate.

Before Alfred knew what he was thinking, he gripped onto the hand and allowed himself to be pulled onto the small little rowboat. Soon, he found himself placed between his dream man and the annoying flamboyant one.

"Ah, bonjour, jolie garcon," the flamboyant one chimed in a language Alfred did not know and snaked an arm around his side.

"Don't do that," Alfred said quickly, prying the man off him, which resulted in him leaning against Arthur. Alfred desperately tried to hide a blush coming onto his face by looking down at the bottom of the boat. He still couldn't get over seeing himself with two legs. This was not a situation Alfred enjoyed all too much. He hated pirates, but he found that man, so he couldn't just leave… Why the hell did he have to be a pirate?

"Lad?" the man was trying to get Alfred's attention. Alfred snapped out of his stupor and looked into those deep, wonderful gems of eyes. "I asked you your name. The least you could do is tell me what it is."

"Um…A-Alfred," Alfred stuttered and mentally hit himself a thousand times over. Why did he sound so pathetic for his first words to this man? Why?

"You don't have a last name?" the flamboyant one asked.

"Um…uh…" Alfred thought for a second. What was a common human last name? "Jones," he blurted out.

"Alfred Jones," the dream man said and Alfred nearly melted when he heard that heavenly voice say his name. "Well, Alfred, my name is Arthur Kirkland."

"Nice to meet you," Alfred smiled and nodded politely towards Arthur. Finally, his dream had a name. And a damn good one at that.

"My name is Francis Bonnefroy," the flamboyant one said.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Alfred sighed, wanting to turn his attention back to Arthur, but they had already made it to the pirates' ship. Alfred looked up the side of it. It was huge! Nowhere nearly as big as the last ship Arthur was on, but it was still rather nice. No wonder the thing was able to blow apart that navy vessel with no problem…

Ropes came down as they neared the side of it and the others started working to get them up on the deck.

* * *

Living underwater was boring… That was what Mathew always decided whenever his brother was gone. Alfred would always go out on adventures, leaving Mathew to sit by their father's side on a rock, staring at his tail as it shimmered between blue and violet. Mathew smiled as he remembered Alfred always getting mad at those stories humans tell about mermaids and how there are no mermen in those stories. They're always referred to as a whole as mermaids. Mathew didn't mind it much, but it really got on Alfred's nerves.

Mathew sighed, he was soon bored again. He started drumming his fingers on the rock he was sitting on. He looked about the throne room they were in. It was actually a rather large room, but there wasn't much in it. There was a large doorway coming into the room and then there was a long pathway, though there was no need for it, considering they all swam over it. At the end of the pathway was the throne of the king, Mathew and Alfred's father. He always kept his trusty weapon, his trident, right next to the throne. On either side were beautiful rocks for Alfred and Mathew to sit on. Though, Alfred has never sat on it in his life. Maybe once, when he was little, but that didn't last long. Around the room, decorating the walls, there were several, very tall windows that stretched from the ceiling to the ground.

"Mathew," Mathew's father, King Triton, spoke suddenly, making Mathew jump. He looked over to his aging father, his hair and long beard graying. The bright blue eyes he had given Alfred and Mathew were shining with worry. His tail a gorgeous green.

"Yes sir?" Mathew asked politely. Unlike, his brother, he treated all adults with respect.

"Have you seen Alfred around?" he asked and Mathew looked away quickly. That was the question he wanted to avoid. Alfred always relied on him to cover for him with their father.

"Um, no, not really, sir," Mathew muttered.

"Speak louder, Mathew, I can't quite hear you," King Triton sighed. Mathew tried not to roll his eyes. He always did that and Mathew hated it.

"No, sir," Mathew spoke louder this time.

"Do you know where he could be?" he asked Mathew.

"Maybe he's out exploring some of the ocean floor he hasn't seen yet," Mathew shrugged. This wasn't going to end well, he could tell already.

"How long has it been since you've last seen him?" Triton asked.

"A week," Mathew decided to answer truthfully, looking down at his tail again. He looked down at his hands, pretending to marvel at the webbing between the fingers and the slightly pointed nails.

"That long?" the king sat upright from his slightly slouched position. "You're the one who sees him the most, yeah?"

"Well…yes," Mathew muttered

"God, why the hell do I have to do this?" Mathew heard muttering coming towards them and looked over to the source to find the captain of the guard, Gilbert with his pure white hair and fiery red eyes, traveling towards them. His odd, red tail shimmering in the scant rays of light they actually got in this room.

"Hi, Gil," Mathew waved politely to him as he swam quickly down the pathway.

All Gilbert did was nod politely (in the wrong direction, Mathew might add) and continued on his way to the front of King Triton's throne.

"Sire, I have bad news," Gilbert said, looking down, and not up at the king.

"Yes?" Triton asked rather irritably. It was obvious he was still thinking about Alfred.

"Well," Gilbert started swimming in circles as he talked. "Me and my awesome men were awesomely doing our duties." Mathew giggled. He always found it entertaining when Gilbert went off on his rants about how awesome he was. "And we were trying to find Alfred, since he hadn't been seen from anyone in quite a while. And…" Gilbert stopped talking and swimming at the same time. He looked terrified to continue.

"Continue," Triton waved to him. Mathew leaned forward slightly, he was actually getting interested now.

"Well, we thought we saw him in a town…" He winced. "Up on land." Triton looked furious. Mathew was shocked. Alfred had dreamed of going on land, but Mathew never thought he would do it. Gilbert continued before Triton could interrupt. "And so we went to investigate. It only took us a few minutes to dry on the beach before we got our legs and we searched around. Turns out…he signed up for the human's Navy."

What followed was an awkward silence that Gilbert chose to fill by flinching away from what he knew would be the wrath of King Triton. Mathew looked at his father, curious to see what his reaction would be.

"WHY DIDN'T YOU STOP HIM!" Triton nearly screamed and Mathew jumped again, this time a lot higher. He stayed above his rock now, swimming slightly away from his scary father. His face was turning red, he was so mad. And his glare was set on Gilbert, like he wanted to kill him.

"He was already on the ship!" Gilbert said quickly, trying to save his skin. "The sea was rough and we couldn't risk allowing it to splash us in front of that huge crowd!"

"Good Lord, Alfred!" Triton seemed to be calming down, so Mathew inched back towards his rock.

"It was amazing, though," Gilbert added. "I saw him get splashed directly by the water. I saw him flinch, like he was afraid of turning back, but nothing happened."

"Really?" Mathew asked. That was interesting… "That could only mean…"

"He's…HUMAN?" Triton snapped again.

"I guess," Gilbert flinched.

"Go find him and bring him back," the king said through clenched teeth. "I will turn him back with my own magic if I have to!"

Mathew even flinched at his father's severity as Gilbert made a hasty retreat out of the room. Mathew looked after him longingly for a second, then he stole a quick glance at his father. He swam quickly after Gilbert, before his father could see where he was going.

Eventually, Mathew caught up with him, swimming to his left side.

"I'm coming with you," Mathew said and Gilbert looked back at him like he was crazy.

"Are you nuts?" Gilbert asked, stopping where he was in the hallway, Mathew copied.

"I'm coming with you," Mathew insisted, staring right into Gilbert's eyes.

"Do you know how dangerous that is, birdie?" Gilbert asked and Mathew twitched at his nickname. He didn't even know what a "birdie" was. Why did he have to call him that?

"Yes, I know full well," Mathew crossed his arms over his chest.

"You're not coming," Gilbert said and continued swimming, like that was that. But Mathew wasn't giving up so easily.

"Yes, I am," he insisted. "Even if you say I can't, I'm still going to follow you."

"Look," Gilbert turned around to face Mathew. "I know you want to go to help your brother, but you're just a little too much to handle. He," he pointed back to the throne room, "would have my head if anything happened to you."

"This isn't about Alfred," Mathew said. "He can handle himself just fine. I've seen him fight a shark and wound out without a scratch on him. I just want to get away."

"There are better ways to get away," Gilbert placed a hand delicately on Mathew, as if he would break with the slightest touch. That just irritated Mathew to no end.

"Will you stop treating me like I'm made of glass?" Mathew snapped. "I hate it when people do that!"

"Well, I just treat you like that because you're a prince," Gilbert look stunted at Mathew's outburst.

"Do you treat Alfred like that?" Mathew sighed.

"Well, the only difference between you two is that you're younger," Gilbert tried to defend himself.

"I'm not younger!" Mathew said, exasperated. "We're twins! We're the same age! Does no one get that!"

"So, this isn't about you trying to get away," Gilbert raised an eyebrow. "This is about you wanting to prove you're just as good as your brother."

"I-I guess," Mathew looked down at the fin at the end of his tail. It swished around automatically, keeping him where he was.

"You're still not coming," Gilbert said, sadder this time.

"Why not?" Mathew snapped.

"Because that means that I have more people to watch out for," Gilbert said quickly. "I'm only taking the minimum people I can and even that's too much. If I didn't need a ship to find him…"

"I can go with you and I won't be a burden, I swear!" Mathew pleaded.

"Does your dad know you're going?" Gilbert winced.

"No…" Mathew muttered. "He doesn't even approve of me leaving the castle…"

"Okay then, come quietly," Gilbert sighed, like he couldn't believe what he was saying.

"What? Really?" Mathew asked hopefully as Gilbert started swimming again.

"Just promise me you won't make my life miserable," Gilbert laughed as the hyperactive Mathew swam ahead victoriously.

"I'm coming, Alfred," Mathew muttered to himself.

* * *

**Alrighty then! This is my newest story, Kidnapped! Believe it or not, it is a twist on The Little Mermaid. I am putting my own style to it, though. Like making the mermaids a little bit more like those not in Disney, but in real life. And, you're also starting in the middle of the story! Another think I would like to point out really quick, when they are underwater, the merpeople, they are not speaking in English. They are speaking in whatever merpeople speak in to talk to each other.**

**I absolutely love reviews! They are love and keep me going with my writing!**

**And I do not own Hetalia or the Little Mermaid, I swear! If I owned Little Mermaid, it would have turned out a little bit more like this and a lot less kid friendly!**


	2. Feelings

Being aboard the pirate ship was not an experience Alfred enjoyed. The minute he stepped onto the deck, he was nearly rammed into by a burly sailor. Or should he say pirate… Nearly everyone on the crowded ship had their arms completely covered by tattoos. All of them, including Arthur and Francis, just bore simple, poofy white shirts and simple pants. The color of the pants changed, anything from black, to green, to red.

And then there was the man walking down the main staircase. He was far different from the others, not only in attire, but how he walked. He bore a large red coat that nearly went down to the ground with gold trim and gold buttons. He bore a matching hat over his deep brown hair that had a giant feather going off to the side. His eyes reminded Alfred of Arthur's, but this man's shone far less. He walked like he meant business right towards the group that was just on the little boat. The rower disappeared with the rest of the crew, off to do something. Alfred didn't know that there would be anything to do with so many on board.

"So, you're the last survivor?" the man adorned with the big coat asked in an accent Alfred didn't know.

"Um, yeah," Alfred said.

"His name is Alfred Jones," Francis informed. Alfred was slightly surprised to see how calm he was talking to what looked like a major authority figure.

"Hmm," the man hummed and seemed to be looking Alfred over. He even grabbed onto Alfred's chin, lifting it up and examining more. What he was examining, Alfred did not know. "Seems like he would be fine," the man said, letting Alfred go. "We will have to do something about those clothes, amigo. Can't have you going around dressed as Navy."

"I have some extra clothes that might fit him," Arthur said.

"You're just looking to get out of work," Francis teased.

"Whatever, frog," Arthur sighed.

"If you're so keen to help him, Kirkland, then you can mentor him," the man chuckled. "Show him around the ship and tell him what he should be doing."

"Why do I have to?" Arthur complained.

"There are worse things to be assigned to," Francis eyed Alfred flirtatiously and Alfred shivered. "He is not bad looking."

"This one is not yours, frog!" Arthur snapped and Alfred had to wonder… Not his? What did that mean?

"As much as I hate to admit it," the man sighed, "I agree with him. Francis, you are not to touch him."

"Aw, you take the fun out of everything, Toni," Francis whined.

"My name is Antonio, by the way," the man addressed this to Alfred now. "But you will address me as Captain Carriedo."

* * *

Arthur silently groaned as he led Alfred below decks. Why the hell did he have to open his big mouth? Now he was stuck showing a new kid around… Though, there were worse people to be stuck with.

"So, Alfred," Arthur asked him as Alfred's eyes were wandering everywhere. It was almost like he had never been inside the bowels of a ship before. Dear God, please make that not be so… "How long were you on that Navy ship?"

"Um, about a day," Alfred admitted shyly. "I was trying to find someone and it took me a while to realize that he was at sea."

"Who were you looking for, your father?" Arthur asked, curious.

"Oh, I know where he is," Alfred said quickly and then winced, like he didn't mean to say that. "I, um, I was looking for my brother!" he said happily, like that was the answer to everything.

"Right," Arthur sighed. Great, a kid with only a day's experience at sea. It was no wonder he was wobbling all over the place. He was smashing into walls as the boat rocked, whereas Arthur moved expertly with the waves. He had years of experience at sea, he just had troubles walking on land after being on a boat for so long. "I will show you our sleeping quarters first, then show you around below decks a little more afterwards."

"Okay," Alfred nodded. Arthur had to admit, though, this kid could be cute sometimes. Like how he was following Arthur like a lost dog. His eyes were wide with wonder as he was led through the maze that was below decks.

Arthur sighed, on his old ship, it wasn't a labyrinth underneath, there was no problems figuring out where you were going…Arthur missed that ship…

"So, um, what position do have on this ship?" Alfred asked curiously. Arthur couldn't help but notice all the breaks in Alfred's speech. It was almost like English wasn't his first language. He did have an odd accent with it…

"Just basic crew hand," Arthur sighed disappointedly. He _should_ be doing so much more, considering his high position on his last ship, but he couldn't talk about that. That was just humiliating.

"You don't sound too happy about it," Alfred noticed innocently.

"Well, I think I have more to give than just moving a mast to the left," Arthur said sadly.

"I think you could do more than that, too," Alfred chimed happily and Arthur couldn't help but blush.

"R-Really?" Arthur asked.

"Well, you look like someone who could do a lot more than move a…um…a mast?" he asked the last word, like he wasn't sure it was right.

"Well, thank you," Arthur said calmly. It was rather adorable how he was trying to find the right word… They stopped in front of the door to the sleeping quarters. This was the nicest anyone had been to him since he got on this ship. He opened the door. "So, um, this is the place we sleep."

It wasn't much. It was just a dank room as close to the water as it got. It was filled with hammocks set up in pairs of two. One three feet above another. They were scattered all over the room. Most of the crew had their own trunks and they stayed in the general area of their bunk.

"I figure you would probably be sleeping in the hammock above me," Arthur thought out loud, going to his hammock and getting his trunk, which somehow stayed right underneath it. "Considering the one that used to sleep above me walked the plank just a few days ago."

"Walked the plank…" Alfred repeated, like he didn't know what that meant. Arthur looked at him questioningly as he opened his trunk.

"He walked off the side of the boat and most likely died in the water," Arthur cleared up.

"What! Why did that happen?" Alfred seemed absolutely stunned. He sat down on Arthur's hammock.

"Carriedo," Arthur scoffed. "The slightest disturbance and he's not afraid to kill them on the spot."

"You don't like him," Alfred said. "Or Francis."

"Is it obvious?" Arthur asked sarcastically and started rummaging through the trunk as Alfred started kicking his legs, which resulted in the hammock swinging.

"I like you," Alfred said suddenly and Arthur felt his face rapidly heat up.

"What?" Arthur tried to stand up, but he just wound up hitting his head on the open top of his trunk. "Bugger!" He held his head in pain. "C-come again, Alfred?"

"Well, you're nice," Alfred hummed, still kicking his legs like nothing happened. Arthur dove to his trunk again to hide his still bright blush. "And from what I've seen, you don't act anything like them. I just…like you, I guess."

"Well, thank you," Arthur muttered, he wasn't even looking while he was rummaging through his trunk. Thoughts were racing through his mind too fast. He wasn't really starting to like Alfred, was he? Liking another man was…unnatural. According to the Bible, marriage was a union between a man and a woman. There was nothing about a man and a man. He was pretty sure that was a sin. But…there was something about Alfred that he couldn't get out of his head. And he was just too cute. The way he acted so innocent when he talked, like he had never encountered the real world before. The way he acted like he didn't know anything… It was all just…

"Um, Arthur?" Alfred's voice snapped Arthur out of his daydreaming.

"Hm? Yes?" Arthur looked out of the trunk.

"You've been staring into that trunk for a couple minutes now," Alfred said delicately. "You okay?"

"Yes, yes, fine," Arthur said with a wave of his hand. He pulled out a shirt and pants without looking at them and handed them to Alfred. It turned out to be a regular white shirt that the rest of them wore and a pair of black pants. "Here, I think you could keep your boots."

"My what?" Alfred asked, taking the clothes.

"Those things on your feet," Arthur helped.

"Oh, yeah!" Alfred laughed nervously, looking down at his feet. "Those!"

"Go ahead and change now," Arthur chuckled. "If you want, I could keep your clothes in here. Otherwise, we will just throw them overboard."

"Oh, um, I-I guess I don't really care what happens to them…" Alfred said as he took off the jacket and then the shirt, revealing all of his toned muscles. Arthur watched from his position on the floor. He tried to remember what he liked about women. Because he was sure as hell they didn't look as beautiful as that. His arms looked like he lifted weights every single day of his life. And then there was his stomach… His abs formed a perfect six-pack that looked possibly rock hard. The coat must have been awfully warm, there was a small layer of sweat over his chest that made him practically glisten. The vision was gone as soon as Alfred put the shirt on.

Arthur looked away quickly when he saw Alfred start to take his pants down. He didn't want to be caught staring… He had to get his thoughts straight. This man just brought back memories from that time when his ship sank… He didn't know why Alfred reminded him of that. But all he could think of right there, looking into the trunk, was the fire, the freezing cold water, that beach, and that song. How did it go again? _My heart's been pierced by Cupid, I disdain all glittering gold. There is nothing can console me but my jolly sailor bold… _

"Dude, are you sure you're okay?" Arthur came back to reality with Alfred shoving his shoulder.

"Yes, I'm fine," Arthur reassured him, giving Alfred a quick look over. He didn't look bad wearing that. A step better than the Navy uniform…But something was missing… "Hold on a tic," he said and rummaged through his chest, looking for something. Eventually, he found it and pulled it out. It was a simple black vest. "Put this on," he ordered Alfred. "Just don't button it up."

"Good," Alfred said, taking the thing from Arthur and slipping it on. "Because I don't know what buttons are."

Arthur chuckled as Arthur pulled up the sleeves so that they went to his elbows, showing off his muscular forearms.

"Right, I might as well give you the tour now," Arthur sighed, leading Alfred out of the room. This was going to be a long day.

* * *

Gilbert sighed. This was stressful. First, there was the matter of sneaking the prince out of the castle. Then there was getting his own men used to the idea. He had successfully led Mathew to the beach that he and the others usually dried out on. And now the problem rose to get him out of the water.

"Have you even just stuck your head out of the water before?" Gilbert asked, just about ready to give up.

"N-no," Mathew shook his head nervously. He was visibly shaking. The poor kid was terrified of air.

"Hey, I'm going to point something out to you," Gilbert said, coming close to Mathew. He pointed at Mathew's neck, where his gills were. Even now, they were opening and closing. "What are these?"

"M-My gills," Mathew muttered.

"And what is right there?" Gilbert poked a finger near Mathew's side, where his lungs were.

"M-My lungs," Mathew said.

"And what is that?" Gilbert pointed at Mathew's mouth.

"M-My mouth," Mathew admitted.

"See?" Gilbert said helpfully. "You're all set to breathe up on land. You don't just have to breathe underwater."

"B-But what if I c-can't?" Mathew asked.

"There are about 20 of us up there already," Gilbert tried. "They are all fine. I'm pretty sure they all got their legs by now. Would you please work with me here?"

"I-I don't know…" Mathew muttered, looking down at the ground. The sea was murky here from all the sand, so Gilbert wasn't quite sure what he was looking at.

"You know what? Fine," Gilbert sighed. He was going to get this kid up onto the rocks, whether he liked it or not. Gilbert swam around him so that he was behind Mathew and then, before Mathew could move, he swiftly moved his arm to his tail and swiftly pulled up, holding onto his back with his other hand, so he was carrying him.

"Wh-what are you doing?" Mathew started panicking. His gills started opening and closing faster and faster.

"Getting you above water," Gilbert said calmly.

"L-Let go of me! What do y-you think y-you're doing!" Mathew tried hitting him, but it didn't work.

"You told me to stop treating you like you were made of glass, so that's what I'm doing," Gilbert said, swimming upward.

"L-Let go of me!" Mathew demanded, trying to hit Gilbert harder.

"Not a chance," Gilbert said as their heads broke the water. Mathew didn't seem to pay any attention to it, though. He just kept struggling.

"S-stop! L-let me go! I-I changed my mind! I-I don't w-wanna b-break the w-water!" Mathew kept on fighting.

"You sure?" Gilbert laughed, getting Mathew a little more out of the water on his way to a rock.

"Y-yes! L-let me go! Now!" Mathew ordered.

"Okay, fine," Gilbert grinned, placing Mathew on the rock. Mathew immediately went on alert, like something horrible just happened.

"What did you do?" Mathew curled his tail close to him and tucked it into himself with his arms.

"Put you on that rock," Gilbert said simply, swimming over to a different rock.

"How did you…?" Mathew looked up at the sky as his voice trailed off. Gilbert laughed. He remembered his first time seeing the sky not covered by the ocean. It _is_ clear…

"I'm awesome," Gilbert said proudly as he hoisted himself up onto a rock. "I can do whatever I want." Gilbert thought for a quick second and looked around at the others, who were getting clothes on. "Hey!" he called over to them. "Do me a favor and bring us two long jackets?"

"What do we need those for?" Mathew asked innocently.

"Well, when we get our legs, we don't have clothes on," Gilbert muttered, thankfully taking the jackets from the person who handed it to him.

"What are clothes?" Mathew asked.

"Mein Gott," Gilbert sighed, handing Mathew the jacket. "Just use this to cover up your tail. When you're dry, you'll understand." Gilbert himself put the coat around himself so it covered up what needed to be covered up eventually.

"Um, okay," Mathew said, copying what Gilbert was doing. "So, you said you have a ship to search for Alfred?"

"Yes, but first we need to check around town to see if he stayed," Gilbert said. He paused for a second. "How good is your English?"

"Um, I know enough to carry on a conversation," Mathew said. "Why? Do I need to start speaking English now?"

"It would be pretty unusual if you didn't," Gilbert laughed, shaking his head furiously to see if that would help him dry off.

"Okay, um, I'll try," Mathew sighed. And then he switched from his native tongue to English. "So, is this good enough?"

"It sounds very broken up," Gilbert spoke English with ease, which he was proud of. "Alfred was pretty good at it."

"Yeah, he tried to teach me," Mathew muttered and Gilbert noticed that, as his hair dried, there was one strand that was starting to curl and stand straight up. He couldn't help but wonder if that happened to Alfred…

"Well, it's enough to get by," Gilbert helped.

"Thanks," Mathew sighed. "And thank you for dragging me up here, I didn't think it was so pretty…"

"Yeah, the world up here is pretty awesome," Gilbert grinned. "Nowhere near as awesome as me, though."

"Whatever you say, Gil," Mathew laughed.

"Well, that sounded more fluid," Gilbert laughed.

"I feel weird," Mathew squirmed slightly.

"That would be you drying off," Gilbert said.

Mathew squirmed around even more, his face showing that he did not feel comfortable in the slightest. "I don't like having legs," he said and Gilbert noticed that he was moving underneath the jacket. "And what is that?" he said uncomfortably, a blush spreading fast over his face.

"Don't worry, you get used to it," Gilbert laughed, feeling his own legs appear. "Now you know why I gave you the jacket."

"Thank you," Mathew muttered.

"Are you going to need help standing?" Gilbert asked, standing up and putting the jacket on over his shoulders. It was long enough so that, when he buttoned it up, it covered everything up down to his knees.

"Um, yeah, I think so," Mathew muttered and Gilbert saw that curl become even more prominent.

"Alright, give me your hand," Gilbert said, holding his hand out for him, which he took. Gilbert pulled him up right and Mathew stumbled around for a while, before becoming stable standing upright. Gilbert caught him marveling at his hand and how it was no longer webbed in between the fingers. He also noticed how Mathew's jacket was being held clumsily so that it barely covered anything. "Do you think you could stand by yourself for a second?" Mathew nodded and Gilbert shakily let go. He quickly grabbed hold of the jacket and forced Mathew's arms through the arm holes and let the bottom drop down to his knees. "Much better," he said happily. "Think you can walk?"

"Um, I think," Mathew sighed, looking down at his feet. He wiggled his toes and Gilbert nearly fell over laughing.

"Come on, take the one on your right and move it forward," he said helpfully. Mathew's right leg slid forward slowly. "Then you move your weight onto that one and move the other one forward," Gilbert guided. Mathew's knee buckled and would have fallen over, if Gilbert hadn't caught him. "Take it slow, birdie. No rush."

"Um, okay," Mathew nodded and looked back down at his feet. The left one moved in front of the right.

"Getting there," Gilbert laughed. Maybe this all wouldn't be so bad after all.

* * *

**One thing I want to say quickly here is that there is no PruCan...Sorry PruCan fans...but it just wouldn't go well. It's just more like a good friend relationship and Gilbert is Mathew's teacher on land. Since Mathew has not been up there before.**

**So, it turns out that I like this story so much, I've already written up to chapter 5...Yeah, it's Summer and I have no life... Gotta love it. But! Since it's summer, I can update once a day! Yayz!**

**I love how many people are favoriting and alerting this story, and I wold love it if all of you who did that would review! Reviews are nice...**

**And I do not own Hetalia, The Little Mermaid, or "My Jolly Sailor Bold." All rights go to their respectful owners.**


	3. Song

It was a long day. Alfred was ready to just flop onto the hammock, but it was really difficult, considering it was about 5 feet off the ground. Alfred still wasn't that good with his legs yet, so this was a challenge.

"Are you scared of heights or something?" Arthur laughed at Alfred staring up at the upper hammock.

"No!" Alfred retaliated quickly. "I-I'm not scared of anything!"

"Right," Arthur chuckled. "That's why you've been staring at it for the past 5 minutes."

"Shut up," Alfred lightly hit him in the shoulder.

"If you want, I could sleep up there," Arthur offered and Alfred sighed inwardly with relief.

"Really?" Alfred said excitedly. He didn't care how stupid he sounded.

Arthur laughed. It was a pretty laugh… "Yes, I will sleep up there for you," his smile was a bright white, Alfred noticed. No other pirates on this ship took care of their teeth, obviously. But Arthur's teeth were perfect…

Arthur stepped up onto the bottom hammock, holding onto the upper one. He swung his left foot up so that it laid on top of the cot. And then he launched himself up and rolled himself onto his back, letting the hammock swing.

"Nice," Alfred commented.

"Thank you," Arthur said as Alfred sat down on the bottom hammock and swung it. "You know, you're lucky that I'm the one you're sharing hammocks with."

"Why is that?" Alfred looked up, though all he could see was the hammock in the light lit by just a couple lanterns. The other members of the crew were talking, but Alfred didn't really care to listen.

"Anyone else would have forced you up here," Arthur laughed. It sounded like magic and Alfred closed his eyes.

"Well, thanks," Alfred opened his eyes back up. The candles were being put out and almost everyone was in their hammocks by now.

"Good night," Arthur said.

"Good night," Alfred hummed, leaning down on the strange hammock. He had never slept on anything quite like it before. It was weird how it swung back and forth with his every move.

It didn't take long for all of the candles to be put out, so the world was pitch black to Alfred. He wanted to go to sleep, but every time he closed his eyes, all he could think about was Mathew. He must be worried sick by now. He'd been gone for…what? 3 days? It had been 3 days since he made that deal. 4 more days and a kiss later, he would get to say goodbye to Mathew. He probably wouldn't say goodbye to his father, though. They left off on a bad note, and Alfred didn't even want to see him, to be honest. But Mathew was worth going back and risking making eye contact with him.

Alfred sat there restless for a while. He had a lot on his mind. If only he hadn't wasted these past 3 days trying to find him, then he would have more time. 4 days was not enough to get someone to fall in love with you… Arthur didn't even look interested. He kept on looking away all the time. Like when they were alone and Alfred was changing. He just kept dozing off into the chest. Alfred didn't know what to do! What if he didn't get Arthur to kiss him within the next four days? He wouldn't be able to handle it if that happened. He only made the deal because he thought for sure he could get this done. But it was so hard!

Alfred eventually gave up trying to think and sat up quietly. He swiftly made his way through the room and into that hallway. He hated having to walk in this ship. Walking was hard enough as it is, but when the ground was rocking back and forth, it was nearly impossible. He stalked quickly and quietly through the maze of hallways that he somehow memorized and up the stairs to the deck. It was dark, but he could tell that no one was up there, they were all asleep down below. Alfred sauntered over to the left side…wasn't that called port or something?

He sighed, leaning against the railing. In times like this, there was only one thing that calmed Alfred down. He went over to the stairs, where the railing slanted up slightly and hopped onto the railing just at the foot of the stairs. He leaned against the railing that slanted up. He propped his left foot on the railing, and dangled his right foot off the ship, over the sea. He still wasn't quite used to moving them at different times. He looked down at his hands and watched as he intertwined his fingers, slightly missing the webbing that used to reside there. Then he moved his right hand to stroke his neck, where the gills were. He wondered if merpeople who came up on land still had their gills, but they were hidden… It felt so weird being human…

He looked out over the dark sea and sighed. Whether he liked it or not, he was homesick. It didn't help that he was stuck on the sea. He looked forward , seeing that town that everyone was talking about earlier that day… Supposedly they were going to restock there. Alfred really hoped that didn't mean pillaging like madmen…

Alfred took a deep breath and slowly let it out. He looked up at the moon, it was only half full…

"_Upon one summer's morning, I carelessly did stray,"_

He started singing, the only thing that would calm him down. His voice sounded different without his magic. It wasn't perfect, like when he would sing as a merman, but it wasn't bad. So that was good.

"_Down by the Walls of Wapping, where I met a sailor gay,  
Conversing with a bouncing lass, who seem'd to be in pain,  
Saying, William, when you go, I fear you will ne'er return again._

_His hair it does in ringlets hang, his eyes as black as sloes,  
May happiness attend him wherever he goes,  
From Tower Hill, down to Blackwall, I will wander, weep, and moan,  
All for my jolly sailor bold, until he does return._

_Come all ye pretty fair maids, whoever ye may be  
Who love a jolly sailor bold that ploughs the raging sea,  
While up aloft, in storm or gale, from me his absence mourn,  
And firmly pray arrive the day, he home will safe return._

_My heart is pierced by Cupid, I disdain all glittering gold,  
There is nothing can console me but my jolly sailor bold._

_My heart is pierced by Cupid, I disdain all glittering gold,  
There is nothing can console me but my jolly sailor bold."_

He didn't know why he sang the last bit twice, it just felt right…

"I didn't know you could sing, lad," Arthur's voice startled Alfred so bad that he nearly fell off the side of the railing.

"I, um.. not that…not that well," Alfred stuttered nervously.

"Are you shy about it?" Arthur finally came up close to Alfred, leaning against the railing, just past Alfred's feet.

"N-No," Alfred shook his head quickly. "How did you know I was up here?"

"I could hear you turning back and forth in your hammock," Arthur smiled. "When I couldn't hear you anymore, I checked to see if you were asleep and you weren't there. I came looking for you, but I didn't expect to hear you singing."

"Yeah, I'm, um, I'm usually better," Alfred rubbed the back of his head nervously.

"That song sounds familiar," Arthur sighed, obviously to himself. "I feel like I've heard someone else sing it."

_That's because they have…_ Alfred thought to himself before replying, "Did it sound anything like that?"

"Yes and no," Arthur sighed, looking up at the sky. "All I can remember about it was that the voice sounded like an angel. I didn't even get to see his face after he rescued me…"

"Rescued?" Alfred asked. He knew just what Arthur was talking about, but he acted dumb just to act normal. "Why were you being rescued?"

"It's a long story," Arthur said. "But there was a fire on deck of the last ship I was on. I disgrace myself by saying that I fled the ship. I was nearly about to drown, but someone came in and saved me. He stowed me on some random shore and just left. The only thing I got from him was that song… It was at that town this ship picked me up…Normally, I would have hated just being a crew hand, but I had to get back to the sea. I missed it too much."

"I know how that feels," Alfred sighed. "I grew up in the sea…" He mentally hit himself for saying that. Shit, how was he supposed to play that one off?

"I know how that feels," Arthur laughed. "My parents took me sailing all the time when I was little."

Alfred inwardly sighed with relief. "Do you sing?" Alfred asked, trying to change the subject.

"N-no, not really," even in the darkness, Alfred could see Arthur's face blush. He was just too cute…

"Come on, you heard me sing," Alfred laughed. "The least you could do is sing to me, too."

"Fine," Arthur admitted. "Just…don't tell Francis I know this song, he would never let me hear the end of it."

"Alright," Alfred nodded.

Arthur sighed.

"_In sleep he sang to me,  
In dreams he came,  
That voice which calls to me,  
And speaks my name._

_And do I dream again,  
For now I find,  
The Phantom of the Opera is there,  
Inside my mind._"

Arthur stopped there and Alfred was almost sad that he did. Alfred had to admit, Arthur's voice wasn't bad, it was actually very pretty… Alfred had never heard the song before, but it was pretty. Arthur sang it a little high, though, like it was meant to be sung by a girl.

"That's all I'm doing," Arthur said shyly.

"Aw, why?" Alfred said playfully. "You're actually not that bad."

"Thank you," Arthur sighed. "But if Francis found out I sang that, especially that part, he would pester me for months."

"It's okay, Alfred smiled, "I can respect that."

"Come on," Arthur said, motioning Alfred to get down, which he did. "We should probably get some sleep. If we get in that town tomorrow, it's going to be a long day."

"Alright," Alfred smiled. He might get to sleep now, if he ran that song through his head like a lullaby…

* * *

Taking Mathew through a town at night had been a huge mistake, Gilbert had found. Before he knew it, the sun had been setting and Mathew wanted to explore the world on land. Gilbert still had to go about on his mission as quickly as possible, so he had to take Mathew with him. Luckily, he had gotten the hang of walking quickly and was even starting to run around.

Gilbert sighed, looking at the building in front of him. From experience, he knew this was the only place he could get the information he wanted. But he definitely did not want to bring Mathew, a prince, into a…a bar.

"Mathew," Gilbert said solemnly, grabbing hold of Mathew's wrist to get him to stop wandering around. He made sure to make eye contact with him. "I want you to stay as close to me as possible. Do not let any_one_ or any_thing_ touch you. Do you understand?"

"Yes," Mathew nodded.

"And don't…talk," Gilbert said. "You'll be a prime target in there."

"What exactly is 'in there?'" Mathew asked.

"That," Gilbert gestured at the bar, "is not a place we are going to be staying in for long. If we could skip it, I would. Remember," he started walking towards it, "stay close."

Normally, Gilbert would blend right into this place. He had done it several times before, but now he was acting like a parent, and it just didn't fit quite right. Normally, he would take a drink or two and go ahead and get drunk with the others, but Mathew was still just a kid, so he couldn't do that. It was a Saturday night, so he knew that his regular person he would talk to would be there. She was always handy with getting information. He didn't have to look far to find her sitting on a stool, surrounded by the usual horny drunkards. She looked like she hadn't changed at all since the last time Gilbert saw her. Her light brown hair cascaded down her shoulders in curls and her pretty, light green eyes were eyeing the men surrounding her flirtatiously. She wore her usual dark green, frilly dress that accented all of her curves perfectly.

Gilbert silently prayed that Mathew would remember to stay close and not talk as he approached her.

"Liza!" Gilbert announced happily, shoving away the drunkard that was sitting right next to her and sitting in his spot. Gilbert knew Elizaveta, he had known her for a while now. She most certainly was not the whore she put herself out to be, she just acted like that to get money that she needed.

"Oh, hello, Gilbert!" she said happily to him. She glanced behind Gilbert for a second and he knew she was looking at Mathew. "Who is this cutie?"

"His name is Mathew Williams," Gilbert said with a wave of his hand. He knew it would have sounde weird if he didn't give him a last name, so he gave him the first one that came to his mind. "He's nowhere near as awesome as me, but I've been taking care of him for a while."

"Oh, he's so cute!" she said excitedly.

"I have a question for you, Liza," Gilbert said quickly, hoping to distract her for even just a second. "To be honest, I'm looking for someone. Could you help me?"

"Gilbert, you're always asking me for help," Elizaveta shook her head. "I'm afraid I don't think I can help you this time."

"Please, miss?" Mathew's voice pleaded and Gilbert nearly told him to shut up, when he saw Elizaveta's eyes soften towards him. Maybe this kid would be a lot more useful than he figured. "W-we're looking for my brother."

"Oh, dear, I'm sorry," she said sadly. Gilbert looked behind himself to see Mathew and he had on the cutest kicked puppy face he had ever seen.

"We're just trying to find him," Mathew looked down at his feet and started twiddling his fingers. "And we thought you might be able to help."

Gilbert was impressed. Mathew's broken English actually made him sound more believable.

"I would love to help, dear," Elizaveta said and Gilbert almost laughed, this was going along so well. He didn't talk though, just in case that might ruin everything.

"Well, he…he looks a lot like me…" Mathew muttered. "Except a lot more…out there… A-And we think he's joined the Navy."

"Oh, don't tell me he was on the navy ship that just left a day ago," Elizaveta said, her eyes widening.

"Why?" Gilbert cut in. "What happened to it?"

"I heard it was sunk by pirates," she informed.

"What?" Mathew squeaked.

"Did you hear which ship?" Gilbert asked. Now he had to rely on the possibility of Alfred being on that ship.

"I didn't hear the name," Elizaveta shook her head. "But I heard that it was supposed to dock at a nearby town soon."

"Well, I guess that better be where we look," Gilbert stood up.

"You're going to check a pirate ship?" Elizaveta asked as Gilbert started leading Mathew out of the bar.

"Either that or the bottom of the ocean," Gilbert said and couldn't help but think _Which is still an option…_

* * *

Far away, in a dark, underwater cave, a dark figure watched in his crystal ball as his plan was slowly being undone. He had sent his minions out to watch Alfred and, if necessary, prevent him from accomplishing his goal. And he was currently looking through their combined magic eyes. He couldn't believe Alfred had found his Arthur so fast.

When the ship he was on sunk, he nearly sent his minions to try to drown the kid so he wouldn't find the man. And now he had to watch as the two sang to each other on the side of the boat. Something had to be done soon, before something bad happened.

"We should probably get some sleep. If we get in that town tomorrow, it's going to be a long day," Arthur spoke and the figure smiled.

That would be how he would save his plan.

_Alfred, you're not safe yet,_ he thought to himself._ I will make sure you are mine. Even if that means I have to go there myself and take him from you._

* * *

**Alright! I didn't want to give away who is taking the place of Ursula quite yet, so we're just leaving suspense for right now. And the excuse I have in here for Alfred and Mathew to have different last names is that two different people came up with them at different times. Yeah...**

**Also, I got a major amount of alerts and favorites for this story last chapter, but I'm petty and I prefer reviews like a loser... So, please review so I can feel better about myself. I'm on summer break, so I'm litteraly checking this thing every second... Because I'm a loser with no life over summer vacation...**

**And I do not own Hetalia, The Little Mermaid, "The Phantom of the Opera," or "My Jolly Sailor Bold." All rights go to their respectful owners.**


	4. Deal

Ivan sat in his sea cave, watching as his minions worked, and tapping his fingers on the rock in front of him. This was not going to work. They were moving too slow and Alfred and Arthur were already bonding after just one day. All they had managed to do was lure Arthur away from Alfred for 10 minutes at a time, at most.

If this was going to work, he would have to lure Arthur away from Alfred for much longer. He could tell just by looking at him, that he was falling in love with Alfred, but he felt insecure about it. That meant, he must have only liked women before, and now he was trying to deal with liking a man.

So, if a woman came along that reminded him of that mer_maid_ that saved him…Yes, that would work out nicely.

Ivan still had the magic that Alfred made their deal with, stored safely into a magic sea shell. All he needed was a little magic and then, using that as a necklace, he would have all the magic Alfred had. All he had to do was stay out of water.

Yes, this will turn out well.

Alfred will become one with him, and then they will rule the oceans together.

* * *

"Okay, Mathew," Gilbert said, holding onto Mathew's shoulders. They were currently on their ship, heading off to that town Elizaveta had told them about. "What I want you to do is not move anywhere. Don't move from this spot. And don't let water touch you. It's the last thing I want to bring you on a ship when you're like this, but it has to be done."

"Why does it matter if water hits me?" Mathew asked innocently. It didn't seem to matter all that much. "Aren't the entire crew merpeople?"

"No, and don't use that word when you're up here," Gilbert shushed him. "We have a few crew members that are human. Meaning they don't know about us. And there is the chance that there are ships travelling near us. So it is very important that you stay right here and make sure no water touches you."

"Okay, okay," Mathew sighed. Gilbert nodded and walked away, leaving Mathew all alone standing next to one of the masts of the ship. This was not at all what Mathew had planned when he wanted to come with him. He did not like the idea of standing still on a ship, trying to avoid water, which he was surrounded by. And it really sucked that he still wasn't good with his legs, so he had to grip onto one of the ropes going around the mast for dear life so he wouldn't fall over.

It didn't make any sense. Gilbert walked around like it was nothing, and he expertly dodged the random waves that crashed onto the deck. Mathew figured it was all from the amount of time he spent up here on land… He even had spare clothes for Mathew, which was amazing considering how many people they had clothes for. Mathew couldn't help but wonder where they hid all of them…

"Oi, you're that new kid, yeah?" a big, burly man came over to Mathew, who nearly jumped at the sudden voice.

"Um…yeah," Mathew muttered. "M-My name is Mathew W-Williams." That last name felt weird, probably because it wasn't his. He didn't even have a last name.

"I'm just wondering why the hell Gil brought you up here," the man said. This one was obviously one of the humans. And he wreaked of alcohol, just like that place Gilbert brought him to the day before. "We don't need any more crew mates, especially one he won't let do anything."

"I just…wanted to come along, is all…" Mathew muttered, looking at the black boots Gilbert gave him.

"I heard we were lookin' for someone," the man said.

"I heard that, too," Mathew said quietly.

"You're such a kid," the man laugh, slinging his arm around Mathew's shoulders. Mathew flinched, his eyes going wide. This man was making him really uncomfortable. He took out what looked like a glass filled with a random liquid that Mathew hadn't seen him holding, and started chugging what was inside.

"Um…uh…please let go…" Mathew's voice was so small, even he couldn't hear it.

"You know what I think?" he slurred, blinking a few times after taking his drink. "I think we should go find a place alone and…"

"Oi! Harrison!" Gilbert yelled over to the man. He walked towards them. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Jus' talking to Mitch here," he slurred and Gilbert forced the drink out of his hands.

"Give me that, I believe you've had enough," he snapped, taking a long drink himself. "And his name is Mathew," he snapped, the drink obviously not affecting him as much as it did the other man. "You would know that if you weren't drunk off your ass. Now get to work."

The man chuckled. "Yes sir," he saluted mockingly and stumbled away.

"Damn Harrison…" Gilbert grumbled.

"Why do you have him on board?" Mathew squeaked, still trying to recover.

"Believe it or not, he's actually very handy when he's not drunk," Gilbert took another swig, emptying the glass.

"Are you any handy when you are drunk?" Mathew giggled.

"Never been drunk before in my life," Gilbert said happily and walked away.

Mathew couldn't help but laugh at how cocky he sounded. He tried to shift the weight in his feet because his right foot was starting to hurt, but all of a sudden, he felt extremely weak. Before he knew what was happening, his world faded to black.

* * *

Alfred sighed irritably. Nothing was getting done. Even he knew what he was supposed to be doing, but the two newest recruits seemed to be doing everything they could to ruin everything. And they kept on asking Arthur for help! Which gave Alfred less time to be with him. He only had 3 more days after this one was over! It wasn't fair!

The more Alfred looked at the new recruits, though, the more he recognized them. The minute he laid eyes on the twins that called themselves Feliciano and Lovino, he knew he had seen them somewhere before…and he was so close to figuring out, when the two brunettes bobbed their way over to him, their curls bouncing with every step.

"Yeah, what do you want?" Alfred asked irritably.

"Is that any way to fucking talk to us?" the one that was Lovino crossed his arms in front of him.

"Yeah, I believe it's fitting," Alfred nodded. He felt the sea spray hit him in the back of the head and flinched..

"We haven't even left the dock yet," Feliciano said happily. Alfred hated how happy and bubbly his personality was. What the hell was he doing being a pirate?

"It's a shame we won't be leaving until tomorrow," Alfred said. "I would love to see Captain Carriedo throw you two overboard for not doing shit."

"Listen, bastard, we just wanted to talk," Lovino snapped.

"Then go talk to someone who cares," Alfred snapped at them.

"Ah, but we have something we want to show you!" Feliciano said happily, going to Alfred's right side, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Yeah, so calm the fuck down," Lovino snapped, going to Alfred's left side and placing a hand on his shoulder.

"What the hell are you guys doing?" Alfred snapped, trying to get his shoulder's out of their grip, to no avail.

"Stalling for time," Feliciano said with a giggle.

"What the hell does that m-" Alfred was cut off with the feeling of something close to electricity go throughout his entire body. His entire body nearly exploded in pain as he cried out, his vision going black. He felt his body hit something hard.

* * *

_"Dad! You don't understand!" Alfred nearly screamed. He could feel tears in his eyes._

_"I do not care!" King Triton's voice boomed. "You are not to see that…that human!"_

_"Stop talking about him like he's an it!" Alfred yelled at him. "Humans aren't that bad!"_

_"How would you know?" King Triton asked._

_"Because I've saved him once!" Alfred argued. "I got to see what humans are like first-hand!"_

_"You did _not_ interact with a human, Alfred!"_

_"Yes, I did!" Alfred screamed. "And I don't give a shit what you have to say about it!"_

_Mathew watched, speechless, as the two argued back and forth. They were always at odds, but it never got this bad. Their father had found Alfred's cave where he kept things he found from the surface world and Alfred was protecting it with his life. Mathew had no idea how to break it up and save his brother._

_"That is it, Alfred," the king snapped. "This place is going to be destroyed!"_

_"What? No!" Alfred shook his head furiously. His dad couldn't be doing this to him. "Dad! You can't!" This was his life! His dad couldn't destroy it!_

_"Father," Mathew swam quickly to his father's side. "I-I really don't think that's the best idea. Y-You should think about it."_

_"I have!" the king roared. "There is nothing that can stop me from tearing this place apart!"_

_"Dad, no!" Alfred tried to plead, swimming towards his dad, but it was too late. He wielded his magic trident, the end beginning to glow a deep red, and fired a beam at one of the walls of the cave. "DAD!" Alfred screamed, trying to get him to stop, but he didn't. The trident fired several more times. The torture didn't seem to end until King Triton stormed out of the room with a huff._

_Alfred looked around in horror at the ashes that made up what used to be his treasures that he had collected for years and years. He shook his head in disbelief, swearing himself to not cry. He resorted to breathing heavily, trying to force those tears back._

_Mathew swam up to his brother, properly concerned about him and stoked his back._

_"Hey, Alfred, it'll be okay," Mathew tried to help his brother._

_"No, it's not!" Alfred snapped, swimming quickly out of the cave and started swimming as fast as he could go. He just wanted to get away, far away. He didn't want to see his dad ever again, that's what he resolved._

_Mathew caught up with his brother, swimming with him to nowhere._

_"Go away," Alfred snapped at him._

_"No, I'm not going to leave your side, Alfred," Mathew insisted and Alfred slowed down._

_"Would you let me be alone for a second so I can bawl my fucking eyes out in privacy?" Alfred yelled._

_"Alfred, you don't need to cry in privacy, I don't care," Mathew tried and Alfred stopped dead. It took Mathew a little bit to stop, as well._

_"I do," Alfred argued. "It's _my _pride, not yours!"_

_"Having problems?" an odd, creepy voice came out of nowhere and the two brothers tried to look around for the source._

_"We could make them all go away," another voice, a little darker, spoke._

_"Go away," Alfred snapped, still trying to find the sources._

_"Come with us," Mathew saw two objects coming towards them. He hadn't noticed until right then that they were in a murky, dark part of the ocean he was unfamiliar with._

_"He will help make you feel better," Alfred saw the two objects, too, but they morphed into two mermen. They had brunette hair that varied in darkness and odd curls in their head that nearly touched when they were next to each other. They came on either side of Alfred._

_"I don't need your help," Alfred said uneasily._

_"Alfred, let's go," Mathew shivered. He had a bad feeling about these two._

_"Don't be afraid," one of them spoke. Alfred noticed that there was something like electricity sparking between their fingers._

_"I-I'm not scared of anything…" Alfred stuttered. He had to admit, though, he was getting very creeped out._

_"Then come with us," one of them said and Alfred felt himself being pushed in some odd direction. Mathew followed them close behind._

_"Alfred, let's go!" he said, louder this time._

_"I-I…" Alfred tried to get out of their grasp, but he just couldn't._

_"Ivan will solve all of your problems," one of them promised._

_"The sea warlock?" Alfred and Mathew asked in unison. Now Alfred definitely tried to break free. He had heard about him. None of the words were good._

_"He will help you see him."_

_"Him?" Alfred's struggles stopped._

_"The human."_

_"He'll help you be with him forever."_

_"Alfred!" Mathew cried out, still following them. "Alfred, snap out of it!"_

_"You mean Ivan could help me…be with him?" Alfred asked._

_"Forever," the two of them said at the same time._

_This offer sounded promising to Alfred. But to Mathew, this would not turn out well._

_"Alfred!" Mathew tried again. The two figures' tails shot out towards him and an electric current spat at him. Mathew flew back a bit and tried to move again towards them, but found himself paralyzed. "Alfred!" he called out, but they were already too far._

* * *

Alfred woke up with a start, gasping for air. He was below decks, on his hammock. He knew why those damn twins looked so familiar! If they were on the ship now, that meant Ivan was using them to prevent him from getting is objective done…That's what they meant by stalling.

"Oh, Alfred, you're awake!" Francis rushed to Alfred's side.

"Y-Yeah, what happened?" Alfred asked.

"You passed out a few hours ago," Francis informed.

"A few hours?" Alfred stood up quickly. "That…that can't have been that long! Where's Arthur?"

"Most likely with that girl Anya we found," Francis smiled fondly, like just thinking of her was giving him a boner.

"A-Anya?" Alfred stuttered. "Who the hell is Anya?"

"Getting protective of Arthur, now?" Francis raised an eyebrow.

"Who the hell is Anya?" Alfred demanded.

"Some girl we found in town," Francis sighed. "She's gorgeous. And she has the prettiest voice you could ever hear. If I didn't know any better, I would think she were a mermaid. Arthur has become obsessed with her, ever since she sang that one song. What was it, My Charming Sailor Boy…"

"My Jolly Sailor Bold. And a-a mermaid?" Alfred stuttered. "Where are Anya and Arthur now?"

* * *

Mathew woke up with a start. Sitting up in that bed Gilbert had showed him he would be staying in.

"Birdie!" Gilbert's concerned voice ran as he ran to the side. "Oh, thank Gott you're alright! Triton would have killed me if anything happened to you!"

"Wh-what happened?" Mathew stuttered, somehow managing English to come out.

"You suddenly fainted on deck," Gilbert informed. "Do you think you're okay?"

"I'm fine," Mathew sighed. He remembered he got a feeling right before he blacked out. It was a feeling of electricity. He had felt that before… That dream, did he and Alfred share it? "I think Alfred might be in trouble."

"Dude, don't tell me it's that twin telepathy thing I've heard so much about," Gilbert said quickly. "I don't think I could handle that."

Mathew shook his head. "That's not it exactly. But, I think we just shared a memory through a dream. I-I felt what he felt."

"What was the memory?" Gilbert asked.

"N-nothing," Mathew said quickly and decided to change the subject quickly. "A-Alfred's not good at sensing things like that, so he probably doesn't know we shared it…"

"Birdie," Gilbert said with a warning voice. "What was the memory?"

"When our father ruined his cave," Mathew muttered.

"That was the day he disappeared, right?" Gilbert asked. "What happened after it was destroyed?"

"Alfred ran away," Mathew said simply.

"What aren't you telling me?" Gilbert asked, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"Don't tell my father…" Mathew said quietly.

"Birdie…" Gilbert warned.

"Alfred went to the sea warlock, Ivan," Mathew winced.

"He did what?" Gilbert's eyes went wide. "Is that how he turned human?" He stood up and started pacing. "Oh, Mein Gott. He made a deal with Ivan?"

"I tried to stop him," Mathew's voice was small.

"But it didn't work, did it?" Gilbert snapped.

"No…" Mathew muttered.

"Oh, Gott," Gilbert started pacing. "Oh, Gott, oh, Gott, oh, Gott! Why didn't you tell your father!"

"To protect him," Mathew looked down at his shoes.

"So you just…hide these kinds of things from your father?" Gilbert shouted.

"Yes," Mathew nodded. "I do it all the time for Alfred."

"What the hell does that accomplish?" Gilbert yelled.

"Well I know what it prevents!" Mathew retaliated finally, looking up at Gilbert. "I saw what happened to Alfred after our dad blew his cave to pieces! _That's_ what led Alfred to do this more than anything else. If they had come to him before that, he wouldn't have gone with them if they offered him the world! We've been protecting each other our whole lives! If Dad found out Alfred made a deal with Ivan, he would cause a typhoon, taking out his anger on every living thing!"

"You should have told him," Gilbert sighed.

"Well, I didn't," Mathew said. "What's done is done. Let's just move on." Mathew groaned as he stood up, storming out of the room with surprising ease.

_Alfred! Why? You've got to help me out here!_

The sun was setting on this, a horrible day for progress.

Mathew sighed, this was not going to end well, he could just tell.

* * *

**And now we know who Ursula is. Yay for Ivan making his way into the story! Also, for those of you who don't know who Anya is, it's female!Russia. As much as I hate genderbending, it had to be done.**

**Also, this chapter starts a series of flashbacks. As this story started in the middle, half of it is flashbacks. Yahoo!**

**Reviews are much appreciated and well loved.**

**I don't own Hetalia, the Little Mermaid, or "My Jolly Sailor Bold."**


	5. Kiss Me

Alfred shoved his way past a thick crowd on land. Francis had told him that he had last seen the two near the bar most of the crew was at. Turns out, they hadn't moved. The crowd was made entirely of males, all trying to get a look at this supposed Anya.

Just when Alfred thought he was nearing the end of the crowd, he heard several guys give out a defeated groan.

"That lucky fuck," one of them said.

Alfred shoved his way past them and, sure enough, he found Arthur. With his face pressed against that of a girl Alfred had never seen before in his life. She had long, beige colored hair and her skin was perfectly fair. She was wearing a very elaborate pink dress with black fringe all around it, making designs. On her head, was a cylinder shaped hat that matched her dress. From the looks of her waist and breasts, Alfred could tell she was wearing that thing the humans called a corset.

When the two released the kiss, she opened her eyes and they were a light purple. Alfred was almost struck dumb right there at her down-right beauty, but something caught his eye. She had a sea shell necklace that hung just above her bosom. Alfred recognized that sea shell. That was where Ivan put his magic… That was why Francis compared her to a mermaid, because she had the magic of Alfred, the son of King Triton.

_Don't tell me that's…Ivan…_ Alfred inwardly groaned.

"Arthur," Alfred called out, coming towards the two. Arthur didn't even look away from Anya. The man looked entranced, his eyes half-lidded like he was absolutely in love. "Arthur!"

"I think we have a visitor," Anya whispered to Arthur with a thick accent Alfred didn't understand.

"Hmm?" Arthur asked, not even turning around. "They can wait."

"I'm not going to sit here and watch you two make out right in front of me," Alfred snapped.

"A-Alfred?" Arthur asked, turning away from Anya for a second. His eyes appeared to be opening slightly, like he was waking up from a dream. Anya quickly grabbed onto his chin, turning him towards her again and dragging him into another kiss.

"So, you don't feel the slightest bit odd of doing this in front of this huge audience?" Alfred yelled at them.

"Getting angry, Alfred?" Francis chuckled, coming up next to Alfred.

"Yes," Alfred gritted his teeth.

"I knew you were in love with him," Francis winked at him.

"Shut up," Alfred groaned, watching them as they kissed.

"She is marvelous, though, is she not?" he sighed dreamily.

"He's not," Alfred glared at him. He couldn't believe what was happening before him. He knew Ivan liked him when he made that deal, but he had no idea he would go to these measures to make sure Alfred failed. "Arthur," Alfred walked up closer to them. "You're coming with me, whether you like it or not." He grabbed onto Arthur's wrist and pulled him away from Anya, dragging him through the crowd and back towards the ship.

"A-Alfred!" Arthur protested. "What the hell are you doing?"

Alfred watched as the sun went down over the side of the ship. 3 more days…

"I'm bringing you back to reality, lover boy," Alfred sighed as they neared the ship.

"Look, I don't know what you're talking about, love, but I would appreciate it if you would let go of me," Arthur said.

Love? Since when did he call Alfred love? "Not until we're up on that ship," Alfred said, blushing.

"Jesus Christ," Arthur scoffed. "Just from a single girl kissing me, you're dragging me back to the ship like some child about to be punished."

"Shut up," Alfred sighed as they stepped onto the plank leading to the ship.

"You know," Arthur sighed, "I always thought that the one that saved me that day was a man, but now I think it might be her…"

"What?" Alfred turned around the minute they got back onto the ship.

"It's just, she sounds like an angel," Arthur sighed. "And she sang that song word for word, like the voice did. And she sounded perfect doing it. I think she might have been the one that saved me."

"How could she have saved you?" Alfred scoffed. "You were out in the middle of the ocean, right?"

"Do you believe in merfolk?" Arthur asked suddenly.

"What?" Alfred sputtered.

"I-I know it's ridiculous, but I think they exist," Arthur said happily. "And I think she may be one. She has all the charm for it, too."

"Will you just stop talking about it?" Alfred groaned.

"Well, she is coming aboard the ship tonight," Arthur said.

"She's what?" Alfred asked.

"Carriedo said it was fine," Arthur sighed dreamily, going over to the side railing far from the plank. "I think I might marry her…"

"No!" Alfred said quickly. "No! You can't do that!"

"Why not?" Arthur turned towards him.

"Because…" Alfred stopped himself before he said something he would have regretted. "Because she's not right for you…"

"And how do you know what's right for me?" Arthur scoffed.

"Because I know you deserve more than just adjusting a mast to the left," Alfred motioned off with his left hand. "And I know that you're not like the rest of the idiots on this ship that think they own the world. I know that you actually care about someone other than yourself, whether you want to admit it or not. And I know you deserve more than just some pretty girl who shows up on a beach and tries to sing for you."

"You think all of that about me?" Arthur asked, his voice softening. Alfred hadn't noticed that they were so close to each other until right then.

"I _know_ all of that about you," Alfred said. "And I mean it. You are like no one I've ever met and far more special than anything I've come in contact with. You would not believe the things I have seen, but they all pale in comparison to you."

Alfred hadn't planned on doing this and sounding so sappy, but desperate times called for desperate measures.

"A-Alfred, I don't know what to say," Arthur stuttered, obviously blushing.

"Kiss me," Alfred said.

"What?" Arthur blinked.

"I said kiss me," Alfred nearly pleaded.

Arthur slowly raised himself on his toes, but he was still slightly shorter than Alfred. Alfred placed one hand on the back of his head to pull Arthur closer to him, and the other on the small of Arthur's back. Alfred had closed his eyes and they were hardly an inch away from each other, when Alfred felt something slam into his side. He was tipped off balance and flipped over the railing, taking Arthur with him as they plunged into the ocean.

Alfred desperately swam in a panic up to the air above the water. He didn't know how to swim with his legs very well yet, so it took all of his energy to keep his head above water.

"Hey, calm down," he heard Arthur's voice and there were hands on his waist. "Stop flailing your arms!" Alfred slowly complied when he realized he wasn't slowly sinking to the bottom of the sea. "Okay, now kick your legs back and forth like this." Arthur showed him and Alfred shakily obeyed.

"Dude, that sucked," Alfred sighed, his side still stinging from his impact with the water.

"Not my favorite activity either, love," Arthur laughed. Even now, it still sounded perfect.

"I'm so sorry!" a voice from up on deck shouted down to them. It was Feliciano. "I didn't see you two there! I didn't mean to push you overboard!"

Alfred blew at the hair in front of his face. _Didn't mean to my ass…_

* * *

_Arthur loved the feeling of wind in his face, the salty sea splashing over the side of the ship, slightly spraying him, and the thrill of steering his own ship. Being captain had its perks, but none that he didn't share with his crew. He was perhaps the youngest and nicest captain on these seven seas, and he was proud of that._

_Arthur took in another breath of that salty sea air, and marveled at how it mixed in with the smell of smoke. _

_Wait…Smoke?_

_Arthur looked down at his deck quickly, seeing a fire spreading from the middle._

_"EVERYONE, OFF THE SHIP! NOW!" he demanded and watched as his crew dove over the side of the ship. He tore down to where the fire was, desperately trying to find a way to put the fire out. But all it did was spread. It got larger and larger, until Arthur was pressed to the railing of his ship._

_Arthur started to panic. He knew full well the expression of a captain sinking with his ship. But all he could think about at that moment was how to live. He dove off the side of his ship, slamming into the ice cold water. He had no idea how he was going to get to land, they hadn't seen land in weeks…_

_He tried swimming, but that only tired him out. After about two hours, it was all he could do to keep his head above water. He had no idea where his crew was, probably at the bottom of the ocean. He was so cold…And he was getting so tired…He could rest his eyes…for just a second…_

_Arthur opened his eyes to the sting of salt water. He opened his mouth to scream, but that resulted in water filling his lungs. He tried to flail about, but he didn't know which way was up and which way was down. His already dark vision was beginning to tunnel and his eyes were beginning to close again. He was going to die. He just had to accept that…_

_All of a sudden, something grabbed onto him, shoving him upwards until he broke the water. Arthur started gasping for air, coughing out the water that got into his lungs. He didn't notice until his breath was evening out that the thing that was carrying him was playing with the bangs of his hair slightly. It was so dark, Arthur couldn't see the hand, but he felt something like a sharp nail and webbed hands._

_"Who-" Arthur's question was cut off by a cough. "Who are you?" Another cough._

_A song entered Arthur's ears. A song that was so beautiful, it should have belonged to an angel._

Upon one summer's morning, I carelessly did stray,  
Down by the Walls of Wapping, where I met a sailor gay,  
Conversing with a bouncing lass, who seem'd to be in pain,  
Saying, William, when you go, I fear you will ne'er return again.

His hair it does in ringlets hang, his eyes as black as sloes,  
May happiness attend him wherever he goes,  
From Tower Hill, down to Blackwall, I will wander, weep, and moan,  
All for my jolly sailor bold, until he does return.

Come all ye pretty fair maids, whoever you may be  
Who love a jolly sailor bold that ploughs the raging sea,  
While up aloft, in storm or gale, from me his absence mourn,  
And firmly pray arrive the day, he home will safe return.

My heart is pierced by Cupid, I disdain all glittering gold,  
There is nothing can console me but my jolly sailor bold.

_"Th-that was-" Arthur tried to talk, but he was soon caught into a coughing fit._

_"Sh…" said that soothing voice that had just sung. "You'll be okay…" The voice started singing that song again, like a lullaby, and Arthur felt his eyelids droop yet again._

_He was sure this was a dream. He was dead at the bottom of the sea by now…_

* * *

Arthur gasped, waking up, but not sitting up. He was smart enough to remember that he was lying on the hammock above Alfred. If he did anything to fast, he would fall off.

Arthur silently groaned, moving his hands to bury his face. He knew that voice belonged to a male. But that voice that Anya sang with sounded just right. And what about Alfred? Where did he fit into all of his? He was nice and sweet, and all, but…Arthur had no idea why he almost kissed him…It was just a spur of the moment kind of thing. Right?

He heard Alfred snore beneath him and Arthur nearly melted. Why did everything have to be so complicated?

* * *

"Are you sure that's their ship?" Mathew asked Gilbert, leaning against the railing. It was just about morning and they had come across what looked like a pirate ship from their distance. Mathew was so, incredibly happy that Gilbert was letting him move around the ship since it was dark and everyone else was asleep.

"Even if it's not, we have to try," Gilbert sighed.

"So, what's your plan?" Mathew asked. "Sink their ship and hope he find Alfred before he drowns?"

"To be honest, I don't have a plan at this point," Gilbert rubbed the back of his head. "I was relying on the fact that he was in the Navy and I figured we could have just asked them for him back. This is different."

"Just a little," Mathew giggled. "So, what do you propose?"

"I don't know," Gilbert sighed. "If we do just one thing wrong, this ship could get sunk. Us mermen could get away easily enough, but then those few of us who are humans will drown. And then we run the risk of them seeing us as mermen…"

"Don't we have our own cannons?" Mathew offered.

"How do you know what a cannon is?" Gilbert asked.

"I've seen plenty of sunken ships," Mathew smiled. "Courtesy of Alfred."

"Well," Gilbert sighed, running a hand through his hair, a nervous habit he adapted from his brother. "Maybe we could use those as a last resort. Load them before we get there and then hope for the best."

"I think that's all we can do," Mathew said, still trying to sound happy. "We'll bring Alfred back," he said after a long silence.

"What?" Gilbert looked at him.

"We'll get him back," Mathew said. He was sure of what he had just said. He couldn't even think of life without Alfred.

"If you're so sure," Gilbert smiled back at him, "then we'll get him. Before anything too bad happens."

* * *

**Yay for Arthur's flashback! And for Mattie and Gilbert finding them! I'm sorry this chapter is kind of short, I was trying hard to make it longer, I really was, but if I made it any longer than this, it was just rambling... So here we are with this!**

**I'm very happy people love this story so much with all the love their giving it! I will have you know, those happy reviews have gotten me to write through chapter 10 already! Please review some more! That would be nice!**

**I don't own Hetalia, the Little Mermaid, or "My Jolly Sailor Bold."**


	6. Found

"Ship ho!" someone called from the crow's nest.

Arthur looked up in confusion. It was only morning… Had the ship been there all night? Arthur rushed to the side of the ship with Alfred by his side to see what it looked like. It was a small ship, there was no more than a crew of 30, maybe less. It didn't look very impressive, either. If Arthur hadn't known better, he would have thought it was a merchant ship. But there were holes for cannons along the sides. They were close enough to the ship so that Arthur could see a few of the people on board. One man who came to his attention was an albino who was barking orders at everyone, he must have been captain.

"Oh, shit…" Arthur heard Alfred mutter. He was backing away from the side slightly.

"What's wrong, Alfred?" Arthur asked.

"N-Nothing," Alfred said quickly. Now that was suspicious.

"Arthur?" that familiar, beautiful, Russian accent chimed behind Arthur. "Is something wrong?"

Arthur turned around to his gorgeous Anya. There was something about looking into those eyes that made Arthur lose himself and forget everything else.

"Nothing is wrong, my sweet," Arthur purred. "That ship will be gone soon enough. It will not cause any harm."

"That's wonderful," Anya's lovely voice said sweetly. "My jolly sailor bold."

Arthur chuckled at the nickname Anya had given him. It matched that beautiful song she sang like an angel. She had to be a mermaid, how else could he explain her beauty? And how she saved Arthur back when that ship sunk?

"Earth to Arthur," an impatient hand waved in front of Arthur's face. Arthur blinked a few times and then turned to where the hand came from. Alfred did not look happy. "You done gawking at your girlfriend?"

"What are you talking about, Alfred?" Arthur scoffed.

"She totally has you under a spell, dude," Alfred said.

"Well, I'm sorry I have found a woman that I love," Arthur sighed.

"No, seriously-" there was a slight urgency in Alfred's voice. But he was cut off by Carriedo's booming voice next to them.

"Captain of that ship, show yourself!" Antonio commanded.

"Yes?" the albino chimed happily. The two ships were so close now that they could just talk and hear the people across the water.

"Give me your name," Antonio demanded.

"The awesome Gilbert Belschmidt, at your service, sir," the albino bowed. He had a cocky air about him.

"What business do you have here?" Antonio asked.

"Searching for someone," Gilbert said simply. Arthur noticed Alfred hiding behind him. "He looks kind of like this," a boy came up beside him. He looked almost like an exact copy of Alfred, except his body movements were a lot shyer.

"Mind giving his name?" Antonio crossed his arms in front of him. Arthur knew Antonio, he was looking to get something out of this.

"Alfred," Gilbert said simply. Arthur heard Alfred curse behind him.

"Might I ask what is so important about him?" Antonio drummed his fingers on the side railing of the ship.

Gilbert sighed, like he didn't want to say that. "Apart from being this kid's brother, he is very important."

"How important?" Antonio had his hand on his pistol.

"Well, aren't you the one with all the questions?" Gilbert snapped. "How about I ask you some?"

"Depends what their asking," Antonio said.

"Have you seen a sunken navy ship around?" Gilbert asked.

"Had the pleasure of sinking it myself," Antonio grinned.

"So you are the man I've been looking for," Gilbert said proudly.

"So, now you're accusing me of having that boy?" Antonio quirked an eyebrow.

"Oh, I know he's there," Gilbert boasted. "You can't fool the awesome me."

"Well, aren't you proud of yourself?" Antonio asked. Arthur felt a commotion going on below him. The crew that was already down there were loading the cannons. This wasn't good.

"You look like a cool person, I'll admit," Gilbert said and a wave crashed onto their ship. He flinched slightly, but the boy next to him stepped away from the side railing. "Nowhere near as cool as me, but still alright."

"You could get to the point sometime soon," Antonio said.

"Fine, I will tell you what is so important about the kid I'm looking for," Gilbert said, obviously getting slightly impatient.

"Please tell," Antonio said calmly. "I am very interested."

Gilbert sighed. It was obvious he didn't want to do this. Arthur looked behind himself and Alfred was shaking his head furiously. He was backing up from the rest quietly.

"Fine then," Gilbert groaned. "He's a prince alright? And I kind of need to get him back."

"A prince?" Antonio grinned. The crew looked back at Alfred, who chuckled slightly, waving. "If that's the case, I think I might keep him."

"You have got to be kidding me," Gilbert growled.

"From the looks of that ship, you obviously don't have the right amount of ransom for a prince," Antonio said happily. "So I believe I will keep him until I can get the right payment."

"Look," Gilbert said through clenched teeth. "You don't want to mess with me."

"Well, you don't look like you can do much from this position," Antonio said. "If you sink this ship, like I hope you're not planning to do, then you will lose your prince. However, I can sink your ship whenever I feel like it, si?"

"You wouldn't," Gilbert glared at him.

"Francis," Antonio called for his first mate. Said man appeared by his side. "Tell the crew to fire."

"Oui, monsieur," Francis said quickly, departing down the stairs.

"This giving us fair warning?" Gilbert asked irritably.

"Si," Antonio nodded, walking away from the side railing now.

"Mathew," Gilbert turned towards the boy. "Get to the other side of the ship, now!"

Arthur watched as the majority of the crew disappeared from sight to go to the other side of the ship. The rest looked dead confused. Arthur jumped at the large BOOM given off by the cannons and watched as the ship was torn to shreds.

"No!" Alfred ran to the side of their ship, looking about ready to jump off the railing and go into the ocean. "Mathew!" He jumped up, over the railing, but Carriedo quickly gripped onto his collar, dragging him onto the deck.

"Not so fast, prince," Antonio said.

"No, no, no, no, no," Alfred shook his head, obviously ignoring Antonio and staring at the debris of that ship. "Not Mathew."

"He's not going to come back, no matter how hard you wish," Antonio said bluntly and Alfred looked at him with outrage.

"You killed him!" Alfred yelled at him. "You killed my brother!"

"Ah, yes I did," Antonio said with a grin.

"You…you," Arthur didn't understand the last word that came out of his mouth, it sounded like some kind of garbled mess. And then it appeared that he was hissing when Antonio grabbed onto him to prevent his struggling.

"Arthur, we should go below," Anya's mystical voice entered Arthur's ears and he turned around, the commotion completely forgotten. "I'm starting to get nervous."

"Not to worry," Arthur smiled sweetly at her. "Nothing bad will happen to you, my dear."

Arthur led Anya down, below decks.

* * *

Alfred was beyond pissed. He was about ready to kill. Captain Carriedo was leading him to what was supposedly his cabin and Alfred was trying everything he could to get out of his grip. Why the hell did he have to be so weak as a human?

"Let go of me, dammit!" Alfred screeched. He couldn't control himself from hissing, that was just a habit he developed from his time underwater.

"I am sorry, amigo, but I just can't understand what you're saying," Captain Carriedo said with a smug look on his face.

Alfred realized he had been talking in his native tongue this whole time. He switched to English. "I said, 'fuck you,'" Alfred spat.

"That is no way to talk to your captain, Alfred," Captain Carriedo chimed as he opened the door to his cabin and forced Alfred inside.

"Why? You can't hurt me," Alfred growled. "If you want all that money you expect." Alfred couldn't help but snort at that. Like his dad would even give a ransom, for one thing. And they didn't even have money, anyway. Carriedo was just wasting his time.

"You know," Captain Carriedo stood close to Alfred. "It's actually a good think I killed your brother. That makes you infinitely more valuable. Try not to waste that."

"I'll try not to, sir," Alfred chuckled. He felt something cold go around his wrist. He looked down to find that he had one of those things called shackles around his wrist. Captain Carriedo forcefully led him to the bed that was in his cabin. The only other thing in the dark room was a desk covered in maps and a candle. The other half of the shackle was fastened to the post on the headboard. "You have got to be kidding me," Alfred laughed.

"Nope," Captain Carriedo said, securing Alfred's ankle to the bottom of the head board.

"So, you're just chaining me to a bed so I won't try to wander off?" Alfred raised an eyebrow.

"Exactly," Captain Carriedo said happily, going towards the door. "Try not to make too much of a mess."

And with that he was gone, leaving Alfred alone in the room.

"Dick," Alfred muttered in his own language. He tried to move his hand and foot away from the headboard. He was only given three inches for them to move. He looked at the one around his wrist and examined the key hole. "Not too hard to get out of," he mumbled to himself and looked around for something small and pointy. On the ground, just a couple feet from the bed was a loose nail that was rocking with the ship. When the ship rocked away, the nail moved away, but when the ship rocked again, it moved towards him.

Alfred outstretched his free foot and waited for the ship to rock back towards him. The nail rolled right under his foot just in time for Alfred to trap it. He dragged it back, towards the bed and kneeled down to pick it up. It would work, he decided and set to work picking the lock. It shouldn't be too hard, he had been picking locks since he was little.

* * *

Mathew watched in horror from the safety of the water as the ship he was just on was blown up. He had to say he was happy to have his tail back, but those humans that hadn't left the ship must have been dead by now…

"Snap out of it," Gilbert yelled at him and Mathew turned his attention to him. "Get your boots and pants back, they've probably sunk to the bottom."

Mathew nodded and dove down below. He still had his shirt on and he didn't know why the clothes mattered to Gilbert anymore. Once he fetched the shoes and trousers, he traveled back up, his head breaking the water, to meet with Gilbert. The rest of the mercrew looked fine.

"Alright, keep the shirt on," Gilbert said and Mathew noticed that he still had his shirt on, too.

"Why?" Mathew asked, he noticed Gilbert wasn't using English anymore and switched back to his native tongue.

"Because we're going to follow that ship," Gilbert said and started swimming towards the ship that had just blown them up. "And, eventually, get on board ourselves."

"So, if I'm bringing clothes, that means I'm going on board, too?" Mathew asked hopefully. He had remembered getting a glimpse of Alfred on that ship and all he wanted to do was find him now.

"You're not leaving my sight, birdie," Gilbert ruffled his hair.

"I still don't know what a birdie is," Mathew sighed.

"That gives me an idea," Gilbert smiled. By now, they were swimming right next to the ship. "I'm gonna show you a birdie I found a while ago."

"Really?" Mathew asked as Gilbert nodded. He put two fingers between his lips and blew into them, causing a whistle to go through the air. They didn't have to wait long before Mathew heard something like a tweet sound of above them. He looked up and saw a little yellow fluff ball twirling around in circles above them before it came to rest on top of Gilbert's white hair.

"Meet Gilbird, birdie," Gilbert said happily.

"What is that?" Mathew marveled at the thing. It seemed to have a face, but it just looked like two dots and something that reminded Mathew of a beak of a squid. The two dots disappeared and reappeared and the beak opened and another tweet came out.

"It's a thing called a bird," Gilbert laughed. "It can somehow fly in the air as easily as we swim through the water."

"Wow, that's so cool!" Mathew smiled at it.

"You're starting to sound like your brother," Gilbert smiled. Then he looked up at Gilbird. "Hey, would you mind doing some spying up there for me, Gilbird?" The bird tweeted again in response. "Sweet! You're gonna look for someone who looks just like birdie, okay? Make sure you can see him at all times, okay?" The bird tweeted and then flew up, out of sight.

"Have you trained it to do that?" Mathew asked. It didn't look like the animal had much of a brain to think for itself.

"Yeah, pretty awesome, am I right?" Gilbert said proudly.

"So it will find Alfred?" Mathew asked.

"Most likely," Gilbert said. "He's small, so no one will really find him very easily. He makes for a perfect spy."

"So, how are we supposed to get aboard like this?" Mathew asked.

"Well," Gilbert said. "We will have one of them," he gestured to the rest, "bring down a dingy. That's one of those tiny boats on the sides. And then we will sit in that to dry off, get our legs, and then sneak aboard.

"Okay," Mathew nodded. "When do you think we will get the dingy?"

"Maybe tomorrow," Gilbert said. "Maybe later."

"But we'll get up eventually?" Mathew asked.

"Yes," Gilbert nodded. "I'm sure of it."

"What do we do with Alfred after we get him?" Mathew asked. "It's not like we can take him underwater when he's human."

"You," Gilbert said.

"What? Me?" Mathew sputtered.

"You are the son of King Triton," Gilbert told him. "You have more magic than any normal merperson. I'm sure you can use a simple spell to make an air bubble."

"An…air bubble?" Mathew didn't know what to say. He had never heard that he could use magic. Could Alfred use magic?

"You make a pocket in the ocean that is filled with breathable air and then he breathes through that," Gilbert informed. "It will be good enough to get him home and for your father to turn him back."

"I don't think he'll go willingly to see our father again," Mathew muttered.

"We'll knock him out if we have to," Gilbert said, but his face softened after seeing Mathew's reaction. "We need to bring him back, birdie. In your dad's mind right now, I'm a useless idiot who kidnapped the last son he had left. If I don't go back with Alfred, I'm better off dead."

"I'm sorry I did that to you by making you take me along," Mathew looked down at the ocean. "I'll work on making that bubble."

* * *

Getting out of the shackles took far longer than Alfred had expected. He was lucky that Captain Carriedo hadn't walked in. By the time he got out of the cabin, the sun was beginning to set. 2 more days. That was not good. He had to find Arthur.

Alfred quietly ran across the deck and below deck, where he saw Anya dragging Arthur earlier. Going into the dark maze, though, he somehow got lost. He could have sworn the turn to go to the sleeping quarters was right there…He tried to retrace his steps, but that wound up getting him even more lost. When he got to yet another dead end, he let out a groan and hit his head on the wall. He was going to be stuck here forever.

"Lost, Alfred?" said a voice. Alfred stopped hitting his head. He knew that voice. And it wasn't speaking English. Alfred spun around quickly, only to find himself face to face with Ivan, the sea warlock. Those familiar violet eyes locked with Alfred's, his silvery hair hung limply against his pale face, he had that damn creepy grin on, and he emanated that familiar, creepy aura.

"I don't need your help, Ivan," Alfred snapped.

"Mind if we speak in English?" Ivan asked in English, using his hand to stroke Alfred's face. Alfred swatted the hand away. He had the same accent as Anya, but Alfred couldn't place it. "It would seem weird if someone walked by and we were speaking our native tongue."

"Shut up, and go away," Alfred growled, him too switching to English.

"So you want me to go back to Arthur?" Ivan cocked an eyebrow. "Two days left, da?"

"Why the hell are you even here?" Alfred asked him. "It wasn't a part of the deal that you come here and try to prevent me getting what I want!"

"We never said I couldn't," Ivan purred. He stepped forward and Alfred stepped back, his back pressed against the wall.

"And sending your minions in is playing dirty," Alfred snapped.

"All's fair in love and war," Ivan said simply.

"What is between you and me is not love," Alfred spat. "All I feel towards you is hate."

"Ah, but when you lose our little challenge," Ivan grinned, "you will be mine, whether you like it or not."

"I can get Arthur to kiss me," Alfred stated. "I almost did it once and I can do it again."

"Not with me around you won't," Ivan smiled. "Anya is a very interesting character for me to play. With your magic, though, it's so easy to make anyone fall in love with me. Maybe I should use that on you."

"Like it would work," Alfred said. "The only person I'll love is Arthur."

"It's amazing how sane you've been able to be," Ivan used his hands to press Alfred's against the wall. "Considering your brother is dead now...Or is he?"

"You think he's alive?" Alfred kept his voice calm. He couldn't show Ivan that he was nearly ecstatic with the possibility Mathew might still be alive.

"Oh, he's swimming along the side of the ship right now," Ivan smiled. "They're planning on taking you back to your father."

"They?" Alfred asked. Then he remembered Gilbert was there. "They are not going to bring me back until I have Arthur."

"Then you will stay here forever," Ivan giggled. "You're so cute when you look like that, you know…" he moved his head next to Alfred's and Alfred could hear him smelling him. He shivered, this guy was just too creepy…And then something unexpected happened. He felt teeth pinch together the skin around his collar bone lightly, not hard enough to leave a mark. It sent a very weird sensation through Alfred and his knees buckled. The only thing that was keeping him up was Ivan's hands on his.

"A-ah~!" Alfred cried out. "Stop! D-Don't do that!"

"Mmm," Ivan hummed. "But you sounded like you love it, da?"

"Don't do tha-Ah!" he did it again, but soon his face appeared in front of Alfred's.

"You sound so much better crying out underneath me," Ivan purred. Before Alfred could make the smart ass comment he wanted to, Ivan pressed his lips against Alfred's. Alfred tried to scream and fight back, but that only resulted in enabling Ivan to snake his tongue into his mouth, allowing it to explore. Alfred tried to wriggle his hands free from Ivan's grip and, at the same time, tried to shake his head away from Ivan's. Nothing worked. Alfred could see through his open eyes that Ivan was thoroughly enjoying this. _That sick pervert._

Ivan separated them long after Alfred had ran out of air. When Ivan pulled away, he started gasping for air like a fish.

"Remember our deal, Alfred," Ivan whispered into his ear just before a sudden pain exploded in the back of Alfred's head and he blacked out.

* * *

**Alright, so this one was longer, to make up for the last one being shortish. Lots happened here, so I hope you took notes. ;) Next chapter is going to be short again, but we get to see their deal! So get excited for that.**

**Reviews are well loved. If you send me one, I might just update again tomorrow. If not...I might just wait a few days.**

**I don't own Hetalia, the Little Mermaid, or "My Jolly Sailor Bold."**


	7. Contract

_"A-Are you sure Ivan can-" Alfred stuttered as the two mermen he was following led him to what looked like a haunted sea cave. He wasn't shaking, he told himself, that was just the ghosts._

_"Yes," they cut him off in unison._

_"Ivan will take care of you," one of them said._

_"This place just doesn't feel right…" Alfred muttered as he was led into the cave. It was nearly pitch black, but there was a dark, purplish light at the end. It was getting larger the closer they got._

_"Relax."_

_"Ivan will make you feel better."_

_They soon blurred into the purple light and Alfred found himself in some kind of stone room. It was creepy as hell, Alfred could admit that. There were holes all over the walls, all of them holding multicolored glasses that held what looked like potions. In the middle of the room, there was what looked like a cauldron with a flurry of bubbles shooting out of it. Alfred just shuddered upon entering the room. He got this feeling in the pit of his stomach that made him feel like he should just swim out of that room as fast as he could._

_But those two mermen were keeping him in place._

_"Yes, yes, Feli and Lovi, what do you want?" a merman appeared behind the cauldron and didn't look up at them. He had silvery, white hair and dark, violet eyes. From what Alfred could see of his tail, it was an intense blue, so dark it was almost black. Alfred's was bright in comparison, with its navy blue color. Until then, he had the darkest colored tail of the underwater kingdom._

_"Someone wishes to see you," the two spoke at the same time again. It was really starting to freak Alfred out._

_"Hm?" the man, who Alfred figured was Ivan, looked up at them. The second he laid eyes on Alfred, he gave off a smile that terrified Alfred to his very core. "Well, well, well, what do we have here?"_

_"Prince Alfred is in love with a human man," the one on Alfred's right side, moved forward, pulling him along with him._

_"And his father won't let them be," the other one moved forward. Alfred tried to pull away from them, but it didn't work._

_"Really?" Ivan hummed, swimming over his cauldron and swimming close to Alfred so their faces were nearly touching. The other two mermen had let go, but Alfred couldn't move. "Well then, looks to me that you should become a human."_

_"Wh-what?" Alfred blinked. "You can do that?"_

_"Really, you're just too cute," Ivan giggled, giving Alfred a kiss on the cheek before swimming away. "That is what I do here, I help people with their problems."_

_"That's not what I heard," Alfred muttered, slowly following Ivan around the room._

_"I admit that, in the past, I was a tad bit evil," Ivan sighed, but he still kept that smile on his face. He stopped swimming and turned around towards Alfred. "However, you may find that, nowadays, I've gotten a little better. Mended my ways, repented, that sort of thing."_

_"But, how would you turn me…human?" Alfred asked._

_"Ah, fortunately, I know a little magic," Ivan grinned. "It's a talent that I've always possessed. Luckily for you, I've started using it on behalf of poor, unfortunate souls, like you."_

_"I-I don't know…" Alfred mumbled._

_"I have a spell that will turn you human for exactly one week," Ivan shrugged. "You will have seven days to get him to fall in love with you. I don't think it will be too hard with your cute face."_

_"A week to make someone fall in love with me?" Alfred asked with disbelief. "That's nowhere near enough time! I-I don't even know where he is right now!"_

_"All you need to do is get him to kiss you by sunset on the seventh day," Ivan said simply. Then, as if to prove a point, he leaned forward and gave Alfred a kiss. Alfred's eyes went wide as he swam backwards, trying to get away from him. "See? It's simple."_

_"What the hell was that?" Alfred snapped at him. _

_"Isn't it obvious? I kissed you," Ivan said calmly, like it was the simplest thing in the world to say._

_"Wh-why did you-" Alfred tried, but Ivan kept talking._

_"Now, I want you to know, since it's happened once or twice, there have been certain people that haven't paid the price that we agreed on. And I am afraid that…unfortunate things happened to them. Most inconvenient, but other than that, I haven't had a single complaint."_

_"Why did you kiss-" Alfred tried again, but Ivan didn't stop._

_"If you get your dream man to kiss you, you will be human forever. With him. However, if you don't get that kiss by sundown on the seventh day, you will be mine." He said, his violet eyes boring into Alfred._

_"Yours?" Alfred asked. "What does that mean?"_

_"It means you will belong to me." Ivan had on this sickening grin. So that's why he kissed him… "Without complaints, retaliation, or trying to run away."_

_"You mean that I would become your bitch?" Alfred looked at him in horror._

_"In essence, yes," Ivan shrugged. "Do we have a deal?"_

_Alfred shoved the bitch part out of his head for a second, to think about the other part of the deal. Becoming human forever…As much as it would be nice to be with that man for the rest of his life… "If I become human, I'll never get to see Mathew again."_

_"You'll have your man," Ivan chuckled. "Life's full of tough choices. There is one thing I haven't mentioned yet, though, before we get too into this. Payment."_

_"I don't have anything…" Alfred admitted shyly._

_"Well, I won't be asking for anything too important," Ivan chuckled, swimming behind Alfred and then whispering into his ear. "I just want your magic."_

_"My what?" Alfred turned towards him._

_"You may not have figured this out yet, prince," Ivan exaggerated the last word, bowing, "but you, as the son of Triton, have the same magic he does. That kind of magic would help me an awful lot."_

_"How come I've never heard of this before?" Alfred asked uneasily._

_"Most likely he was trying to hide it from you until he felt you were old enough to use it responsibly," Ivan grinned, no doubt loving how this was making Alfred angry. "He's probably trusted your brother with it already."_

_"What exactly does this magic entail?" Alfred asked._

_"Simple things," Ivan shrugged. "For one thing, it enhances you past that of a regular merperson. You, naturally, without using your magic, are far more attractive than any other thing on this earth. And then there's your song, no doubt you've found out which song is yours, it is more majestic that any sound ever heard. And, if you were to ever do a spell, or use that trident of your father's, it would be the most pure, most powerful magic ever used."_

_"Why the hell do you want it?" Alfred asked, feeling even more angry towards his father for keeping this from him._

_"I just feel it would be nice to have, yes?" Ivan asked._

_"So, if I make this deal with you," Alfred said slowly, "you keep all of my magic. So, even if I didn't get that kiss, I would just get my fins and gills back and that's it?"_

_"I believe so, yes," Ivan grinned._

_"If that magic is taken away, what happens to all the things you said about me?" Alfred asked. "Like my looks and my voice?"_

_"They downgrade," Ivan said simply. "Only just a bit. I'd imagine you won't be horrible at singing, but it won't be hypnotic like most mersong. And your looks might still be fair, but nowhere near as gorgeous as they are now."_

_"And it will be like that forever after this deal?" Alfred asked. That didn't sound too horrible._

_"Yes," Ivan nodded. "If you wouldn't mind, I would like for you to make your choice soon. I'm a very busy person and I haven't got all day. It won't cost much, just your magic. If you want to cross this bridge, you have to pay the toll." Out of nowhere, a piece of paper appeared in front of Alfred. It looked like a contract and it shone gold. A pen appeared in his hand, glowing gold, too. "Take a gulp, take a breath, if you have to. Go ahead and sign it, we both know you want to do it."_

_Alfred stared at the paper and he felt his hand moving towards it. He couldn't believe he was about to do this. He would lose so much…But it would be worth it. He knew he loved this man, though he didn't know his name. Alfred closed his eyes tightly and moved the pen onto the paper and quickly signed his name. The paper and pen disappeared as Alfred opened his eyes and Ivan was smiling like an idiot._

_"So how exactly does it work that you take my magic?" Alfred snapped, mentally hitting himself a thousand times over for signing the damn thing without reading it first._

_"Most of your magic is in your song," Ivan said simply. "So I can take it out of you that way."_

_"You want me to sing?" Alfred blinked._

_"Better that than some other, horrible way," Ivan said. "It won't hurt, I promise. All you do is sing, and that will sap the magic out of you." He grabbed behind himself and grabbed what looked like a simple sea shell. "And I keep it in here, safe and sound."_

_"So I just sing…" Alfred muttered._

_"If you're nervous, you can just sing the last verse," Ivan chuckled. He seemed to be pulling out all different kind of potions and threw them into the cauldron._

_"Okay, fine," Alfred nodded._

_"Good," Ivan said and then turned his full attention to the cauldron. The next words that come out of his mouth sounded something like a magic spell. "Beluga sevruga, Come winds of the Caspian Sea, lerengix glaucitis, et max laryngitis, la voce to me." He stopped and looked up at Alfred. "Now, sing."_

_Alfred blinked, but then took a deep breath and sang out, "_My heart is pierced by cupid, I disdain all glittering gold. There is nothing can console me, but my jolly sailor bold."

_"Keep singing," Ivan spoke. Even then, Alfred could see something that looked like a gold trail coming out of his mouth as he was singing. The trail was leading directly to the sea shell. He was starting to feel weaker as the magic was being sapped out of him._

_"_My heart is pierced by cupid, I disdain all glittering gold. There is nothing can console me, but my jolly sailor bold." _He sang it again. "_My heart is pierced by cupid, I disdain all glittering gold. There is nothing can console me, but my jolly sail-" _Alfred was cut off when he tried to breathe in, but water forced its way down his throat. Alfred's eyes suddenly stung from the salt in the water so he closed his eyes. He tried to move his tail, but it moved in two, separate pieces._

_"Swim up before you drown, Alfred," he heard Ivan's voice and Alfred decided to obey it. He started swimming up._

* * *

Alfred opened his eyes, gasping for air. He found himself surrounded in darkness and he was rocking back and forth. He was sitting on something hard, his back leaning against something hard, and his hands were held above his head. He tried to move them, but that only resulted in something that felt like metal digging into his wrists. His eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness and he found himself in the captain's cabin. He tried to move his legs, but he felt metal digging into his ankles. He couldn't move at all.

What had Ivan done to him? His head hurt like hell.

That memory made Alfred shudder as he looked down at the ground. Alfred sighed. Was Arthur still going to marry Anya? Marry Ivan?

* * *

**So, I basically just copied and pasted the lyrics to "Poor Unfortunate Souls" into Ivan's dialogue. A lot harder than you would imagine...**

**Reviews are much appreciated and well loved!**

**I don't own Hetalia, the Little Mermaid, "Poor Unfortunate Souls," or "My Jolly Sailor Bold."**


	8. Scales

"You know, my arms hurt," Alfred complained. He had been trying to get Antonio to get rid of the shackled ever since he had woken up.

"That's a shame, you shouldn't have ran away the first time," Antonio sighed. He was messing with a map on his desk.

"Where the hell am I gonna go?" Alfred tried. "I can't swim very well at all. You can ask Arthur, he had to save me when we fell overboard."

"You can't swim?" Antonio gave him a questioning look. "How did you get into the Navy?"

"I may have…lied…a little to them," Alfred said. "I just had to get out into the ocean and that was the quickest way."

"Why did you need to get onto the ocean so bad?" Antonio chuckled.

"I was looking for someone, thank you very much," Alfred said matter-of-factly.

"You're brother? Because he's at the bottom of the ocean by now," Antonio grinned at him and Alfred hissed. "Why do you keep doing that?"

"Force of habit," Alfred said quickly. "And I wasn't looking for him. I would have figured he would have stayed back at home where I left him."

"Looking for your true love then?" Antonio said teasingly.

"Yes," Alfred nodded. "I don't care if it sounds stupid, but I had to find him…"

"Him?" Antonio looked at him curiously.

"Is that a problem?" Alfred asked. "Where I'm from, it doesn't really matter what sex you are. If you fall in love, that's that."

"Well, if you have fallen for a man, good luck getting him to return those feelings," Antonio sighed, looking back to his map. He looked like he was tracing things.

"What do you mean?" Alfred asked.

"Well, around here," Antonio said, not looking up, "men are expected to love women and nothing else. It doesn't matter about what happens where you come from."

"Why is it like that here?" Alfred asked innocently. That didn't make much sense. If you loved someone, it shouldn't matter their gender…

"Don't ask me, I don't know much about love," Antonio sighed.

"Where I come from, everyone has a soul mate," Alfred said, trying to help him. "No matter how bad they are with love, everyone deserves to be with someone they love for their whole life."

"Didn't expect that kind of information from a kid," Antonio snorted. "Since when are you a poet?"

Alfred laughed. "That's just what I believe in," he shrugged as best he could with his hands tied above his head. Antonio had been nice enough to undo the shackles on his legs, so he could at least move those. He crossed them comfortably.

"So, where do you think your 'soul mate' is?" Antonio asked, making a mark on the map.

"On this ship," Alfred said shyly.

"Dear God, don't tell me it's Arthur," Antonio let his face fall on the desk.

"Is there something wrong with him?" Alfred tilted his head.

Antonio propped his head up on his hand, his elbow propped on the desk. He looked over to Alfred.

"He's been daydreaming about some mystical being that saved him from a ship wreck about a year ago," Antonio sighed. "We thought he was crazy, because he would keep humming that damn song over and over again when he would work. I don't even care what it's called anymore. And now, all of a sudden, this girl Anya shows up singing that song and he thinks she's a mermaid."

"Yeah, he told me that," Alfred muttered.

"There's something about that girl I don't trust," Antonio groaned, massaging his temples. "But, every time she talks to me, I lose myself. Like it's some kind of spell."

"That's because it is one…" Alfred muttered quietly.

"Que?" Antonio looked up.

"Nothing," Alfred shook his head.

"I've even agreed to wed them," Antonio slammed his head down onto the desk.

"You've done what?" Alfred felt his eyes widen and his heart plummet. Arthur was _not_ going to be marrying Ivan. Dear God, no.

"Sorry, kid," Antonio groaned, not looking up.

"If you hate Anya so much, I propose a deal," Alfred said. "Get me out of these and I can get hi-her off the ship." Antonio just looked up at him for a second. "Hey, I can't swim, so I'm going nowhere and I want her off the ship just as much as you do."

"Are you going to throw her overboard or something?" Antonio quirked an eyebrow.

"If I could, I would," Alfred shrugged.

"If you're just mad because she's stealing Arthur-"

"I have different reasons to hate her," Alfred said quickly. "Lots of reasons, to be honest."

"I won't ask," Antonio said and then sighed.

"I know you don't like the idea of having her on the ship," Alfred said helpfully, trying to get him to make a decision.

"Multiple reasons," Antonio sighed. "One of the biggest is that having a woman on a ship is bad luck."

"It is?" Alfred asked.

"Si," Antonio nodded.

"More reason to try to get her off," Alfred said.

"If I hear news that she got thrown overboard," Antonio shook his head, standing up. He started walking towards Alfred.

"Sweet! You're letting me go!" Alfred said happily as he felt Antonio messing with the shackles.

"Most of the reason is because you can't swim," Antonio chuckled and Alfred felt the shackles release. He immediately brought his wrists to himself, they were still slightly sore. "You're still going to be sleeping in here, though. I don't want you getting harmed by the idiots down in the sleeping quarters."

"So you do want to keep me in good condition," Alfred mocked him, standing up.

"Only because I want all the money you're worth," Antonio sighed as Alfred made his way to the door.

"Yeah, good luck with that," Alfred chuckled and made his way out the door. Money most certainly wasn't a belief where he was from.

* * *

"So, what did Gilbird have to say?" Mathew asked. He was getting terribly bored just swimming next to the ship and Gilbert had just sent his bird back up there to watch around some more. Mathew knew they could talk to fish, but it was a little weird that they could talk to animals above the water.

"Alfred got himself into a little trouble," Gilbert sighed. "But he got himself out of it, so that's all that matters."

"What kind of trouble?" Mathew asked.

"Apparently he was found knocked out below decks," Gilbert chuckled. "The idiot probably stumbled into the wall. That was after his first escape from the captain's cabin. He was back there, but now he's back to just walking around."

"Well, he's already mastered the art of escaping," Mathew grinned. "He's done it so much already to escape from father."

"I'll bet he's amazing at it," Gilbert smiled. "He will be fine for the time being, but I think we should try to get on board later today."

"Why today?" Mathew asked.

"Gilbird's noticed Alfred's been counting down," Gilbert said. "Apparently he's been here a while. He said he found cool people to watch. I doubt it but, anyway, at every sundown, he's been counting down the days. He has two days left."

"Until what?" Mathew asked.

"I have no idea," Gilbert said. "But I think it would be best to get him back before he gets to zero." Gilbert paused for a moment and then looked right into Mathew's eyes. "Do you think he made a deal with Ivan?"

"M-most likely," Mathew looked down at the water.

"That might be it, then," Gilbert sighed, looking up at the ship. "He's counting down until he runs out of time."

"For what?" Mathew was starting to feel himself panic.

"His deal runs out?" Gilbert shrugged. "I don't know what his end of the deal was, so we don't know what he has to lose when the time runs out. It would be best if we get him to the safety of your father before it's too late."

"I agree," Mathew nodded.

"And then there's that girl on board, Anya," Gilbert said, mainly thinking to himself. "Gilbird says she has them under some kind of a spell."

_Magic._ Mathew couldn't help but think. "Do you think Ivan's on board?" Mathew asked. "As Anya?"

"It's a possibility," Gilbert said. "I have a feeling that this is getting more dangerous than we expected."

"I'm not going home now," Mathew shook his head.

"Kinda relying on the fact that you won't, kid," Gilbert placed a hand on his shoulder. Then he turned his attention to one of the mermen with them. "Get that boat."

* * *

"Hey, Arthur," Alfred's voice chimed next to Arthur as he was holding onto a rope, trying to keep that sail up.

"Well, look who's come out to play," Arthur didn't even glance at him.

"It is nice that I don't have to work now," Alfred laughed.

"Is it now?" Arthur pulled at the rope.

"Are you still going to marry Anya?" Alfred asked.

"Yes, Alfred," Arthur sighed. He was getting tired of Alfred being protective of him. "I am going to wed her."

"I really think you should reconsider," Alfred sounded like he was pleading.

"Why?" Arthur turned around to find Alfred right there, close to him.

"Don't make me repeat what I said before," Alfred's eyes were determined.

"There's nothing you can do to change my mind about this," Arthur said.

"Why?" Alfred growled at him. "Because you think she's the one that saved you a year ago? Because I can assure you that wasn't her."

"How the hell would you know?" Arthur furrowed his eyebrows.

"Because that was-"

"There are stowaways!" Captain Carriedo announced. Everyone one deck snapped their attention to him.

"Care to explain?" Arthur asked.

"We found a row boat on deck that looks like it was recently in the water," Antonio said as he quickly marched his way across the deck. "There are stowaways on this ship and I know it."

"No," Alfred shook his head. "No, that's not possible…"

Arthur watched Alfred run off to check where they kept the rowboats. From that reaction, Arthur could tell Alfred knew just what was going on. He knew what happened that day he almost drowned… Arthur threw his rope aside and ran after him. It didn't take long for Arthur to find him scouring one of the row boats that was pulled onto the ship.

"Is there something you're not telling me Alfred?" Arthur crossed his arms in front of his chest.

"Yes," Alfred said and he seemed to be holding something, but Arthur couldn't see what it was. "There's a hell of a lot of things you don't know."

"What are you hiding?" Arthur asked him as Alfred came from the boat and towards Arthur.

"You remember how you asked me about mermaids?" Alfred asked him, his body close. Arthur could feel his breathing getting heavy. "They're real." Arthur felt something press into the palm of his hand as Alfred started walking away. "Don't follow me," he said as he started running. He was going below decks. Arthur looked down at the thing in his hand.

It was a scale. A simple scale that looked like it could have belonged to a fish. When Arthur moved it in the light, it shimmered between violet and blue.

Crewmates rushed past him, all of them going below decks to go search for the stowaways. Arthur just stared at the scale in his hand. He could feel himself starting to shake and he leaned against the side railing for support. Mermaids couldn't actually be real, could they? They were things of legend. They weren't really supposed to exist. How did Alfred know about them? Was he really a-

A man who was rushing past rammed into Arthur, who clenched his fist around the scale to prevent from losing it. He looked up at the man that didn't even apologize and it sent a shiver down Arthur's spine. This man had snow white hair and violet eyes. He tore past the others without a problem and ran faster than Arthur thought was humanly possible.

He started to get a horrible feeling that this was far more dangerous than he first figured…

"You!" Arthur jumped at the sound of someone yelling. He looked all around himself, but he was alone on deck. He turned his attention to where he heard the voice, and he saw that man from the ship they had sunk just yesterday. What was his name…Gilbert?

"H-how are you still alive?" Arthur barely managed out. He felt like he was about to have a panic attack, so much was going on all at once. Gilbert walked towards him quickly.

"You've been on this ship for a while," his ruby eyes were boring right into Arthur. "You must know where Alfred is."

"I-I…" Arthur didn't know how to say. He was pretty sure he couldn't even form words at this point. He glanced down at the scale in his hand.

"Where the hell did you get this?" Gilbert snapped, snatching the scale from Arthur's hand roughly.

"A…A-Alfred," Arthur stuttered. "He…he gave it t-to me."

"What's your name?" Gilbert's eyes narrowed, looking over Arthur.

"A-Arthur K-Kirkland…" Arthur muttered.

"Oh, dear Gott," Gilbert sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Don't tell me you're the reason for this whole mess."

"I-I am?" Arthur blinked.

"Jeez you humans are clueless," Gilbert shook his head, then he looked back up at Arthur. "Where did you see Alfred go?"

Arthur noticed something behind Gilbert's head and immediately froze. "R-right there…" he had somehow managed to get two words out. His eyes felt like they were about to bulge out of his head as Gilbert turned around.

Alfred had ran out from below decks and was running towards the side of the ship. What was in his arms, though, Arthur couldn't believe. It was that kid Gilbert had with him on that ship, well half of him was there. The other half was replaced by a long fish tail that flailed slightly. The tail was the same color of that scale, shimmering between purple and blue. The kid's eyes were wide with horror and Alfred said something to him, before dropping him off the side of the ship. The rest of the crew came up from below decks and seemed to surround Alfred in a mob.

"Sorry kid," Gilbert said and Arthur tore his eyes away for just long enough to see Gilbert climbing onto the railing. "Gotta go." And then he dropped off from the edge of the ship.

"Hey! Let me go!" Arthur brought his eyes back to the mob. It seemed Alfred was struggling to get away from Antonio's grip.

"Oh, no, I'm not," Antonio grinned evilly at him. "You are far more precious that I first thought."

"No, no, no, no, no," Alfred violently tried to break away, to no avail. "I-I'm really not that special. It's just that I know a-"

"Shut up," Antonio snapped and Alfred whimpered, obeying. "You, my little mermaid prince, are far more of a prize than I could have ever imagined." Alfred continued trying to struggle away. "It doesn't matter if your own people can't pay for you back. There are plenty of people on land that would pay handsome fees for you."

Alfred's eyes grew wide. "I am not something that you can just sell!" Alfred snapped at him.

"I would sell your brother, too," Antonio grinned. "But he got away. What a shame."

"Arthur?" that familiar, angelic voice broke into everything, immediately calming Arthur's nerves. He turned to face his beauty, Anya. "I'm getting tired, we should go ahead below." She was just too cute and innocent as she played with the hem of her dress.

"Alright then, my sweet," Arthur spoke calmly. Any other way and he might harm his precious Anya's ears. "Let us head down there."

"Thank you," Anya's giggle nearly made Arthur's knees buckle, it was so perfect and cute. "My jolly sailor bold."

* * *

**Yay for Anya's mystical spell for making Arthur forget everything... And for me being far too lazy to actually say anything in my author's note.**

**Just...review...okay?**

**I don't own Hetalia, the Little Mermaid, or "My Jolly Sailor Bold."**


	9. Sleep

"No," Alfred shook his head. "No, that's not possible." This couldn't be happening. Not now.

Alfred tore off running towards the rowboats. They couldn't be on the ship. What were they thinking? This is not good, not good at all. The second he reached the rowboat that was laid on the deck, he saw something shine in it. He picked up the object, only to find that it was one of his brother's scales. Alfred felt torn between feelings for relief now that he knew his brother was alive and anger now that he knew he was on the ship.

"Is there something you're not telling me Alfred?" Arthur asked. Alfred turned around and saw that he was crossing his arms like he was disciplining a child.

"Yes," Alfred said, looking down at the scale. "There's a hell of a lot of things you don't know."

"What are you hiding?" Arthur asked. Alfred walked towards him, sucking in a deep breath. He couldn't believe he was doing this.

"You remember how you asked me about mermaids?" Alfred asked him, making sure he was close to Arthur. "They're real," he put the scale in Arthur's hand and started walking away. "Don't follow me," he ordered and started running for below decks.

He tore through the several corridors down below. Where could Mathew be? Where the hell could that kid have gone. Alfred was running so fast, when he ran into someone, he nearly spiraled into the wall, but he kept going. He took a glace to see who ran into him, and all he could see was a bob of white hair. If Alfred was correct, that was Gilbert. Meaning he was probably going in the right direction.

It was hard to make sense of the labyrinth with everyone running around all over the place and he still wobbled on his legs a bit on the ship as it rocked. Eventually, though, he managed to get to a part of the ship where, strangely, no one was around. He noticed that there were scarce puddles of water all around that splashed whenever his feet stepped on them.

"Alfred?" a voice asked quietly and Alfred whipped around. He knew that voice. "Alfred!" Before Alfred knew it, he was wrapped into a hug, familiar golden hair shoved in his face.

"Mattie!" Alfred said happily, wrapping Mathew into a hug, as well. He allowed them a few moments before he pulled Mathew out to arm's length. "What are you doing here?"

"Gil and I are here to bring you back," Mathew said quickly.

"No, I can't go back now," Alfred shook his head.

"Did you make that deal with Ivan?" Mathew asked.

"Yes, I did," Alfred took a deep breath. "And that's why I can't leave."

"I'm sure Dad could protect you from Ivan if you don't-"

"Okay, one: I'm never going to see Dad again in my life," Alfred sighed. "Two: I signed a contract. Meaning nothing can protect me if I don't get what needs to be done done."

"You did what?" Mathew squeaked. "How could you do that?"

"It's a long story and he was very persuasive!" Alfred said quickly. He was starting to hear people coming down to where they were. "And you have to go. Now!"

"Alfred, I'm not leaving without you," Mathew persisted. The boat rocked violently to the side, causing both of them to fall over to the side. Alfred felt water splash onto his face and his attention snapped to Mathew. His legs were turning into a tail.

"Oh, shit," Alfred's eyes widened. He could hear them getting closer. Quickly, he stooped down and picked Mathew up, bridal style. "And we're running." He muttered and started running as fast as he could with Mathew in his arms. Eventually, he did run into the rest of the crew and quickly brushed past them ignoring all the calls of "What the hell was that?" and people trying to grab hold of him, getting him to stop. He could hear people following him so he ran faster. Eventually, he got to the deck, the bright light nearly blinding him. He turned to the left quickly, getting to the rail.

"Alfred, what are you doing?" Mathew asked quickly, breathing heavily.

"Can't go with you, I'm sorry," Alfred said and then dropped him off the side of the ship. He closed his eyes tightly so he wouldn't see Mathew hit the water. Before he knew it, the crew was around him in a mob. His arms were pulled behind him so he couldn't move, no matter how hard he struggled. "Hey! Let me go!"

"Oh, no, I'm not," Captain Carriedo's voice chimed evilly and Alfred's eyes widened. "You are far more precious than I first thought."

"No, no, no, no, no," Alfred shook around violently. This couldn't be happening. Not now. "I-I'm really not that special. It's just that I know a-"

"Shut up," Antonio snapped, pulling painfully at Alfred's arms. He obeyed, whimpering. "You, my little mermaid prince, are far more of a prize than I could have ever imagined. It doesn't matter if your own people can't pay for you back. There are plenty of people on land that would pay handsome fees for you."

"I am not something that you can just sell!" Alfred snapped.

"I would sell your brother, too," Antonio grinned. "But he got away. What a shame."

"Don't even try to threaten him," Alfred growled.

"You going to try to hiss at me again?" Antonio challenged. "My only question now is, why haven't you turned yet? I'm sure water's touched you."

"Not telling you my secret," Alfred glared at him

"Fine then," Antonio sighed and started leading Alfred back to the captain's cabin. "But, this time, you are not leaving the cabin."

"Sure thing, Captain," Alfred spat. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Arthur being led below decks by Anya.

* * *

The shock of hitting the cold water made Mathew gasp. He travelled down a good couple feet before he got to his senses and started swishing his tail to get himself upright.

"Birdie!" Gilbert swam to him quickly. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Mathew said, looking up at the ship through the water. "But what about Alfred?"

"I'm starting to think he can't take care of himself anymore," Gilbert sighed.

"What do you think is happening now?" Mathew wondered.

"That captain's probably got his greedy hands on him," Gilbert shook his head. "He's probably going to be taken back to the captain's cabin."

"I screwed up," Mathew muttered.

"No, you did fine, birdie," Gilbert placed a hand on his shoulder. "You did nothing wrong."

"But we don't have Alfred," Mathew complained. "And we're running out of time."

"Well, I found the reason for all of this," Gilbert said helpfully.

"You found him? Who is he?" Mathew said excitedly.

"Well, you remember seeing that blonde with the giant ass eyebrows?" Gilbert asked.

"That's him?" Mathew blinked. "I never thought Alfred would have fallen for a pirate…"

"I have another plan," Gilbert looked up at the ship. "Maybe if we get him, Alfred would follow."

"Do you think it's smart to drag a human into this?" Mathew asked.

"What other choice do we have?" Gilbert asked. "He's not going to come willingly. And we need to get him to Triton."

"That won't help," Mathew muttered, looking down. "He signed a contract."

"He did what?" Gilbert snapped. "Shit, that is not good."

"I know it's not," Mathew muttered. "I think we need to just rely on the fact that Alfred might be able to do this on his own."

"Maybe you're right," Gilbert sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "But maybe we should get your father just in case he can't."

"Okay," Mathew nodded. It pained him to have to bring their father into this, as much as Alfred hated him now. But he didn't know what would happen to Alfred if he failed. He had to make sure Alfred was going to be okay.

"I think we should get some sleep now, though," Gilbert said, but he didn't quite sound like himself. He didn't sound natural…

"What?" Mathew asked.

"Sleep is…" Gilbert seemed to space out, his eyelids drooping. "Sleep is nice…" Gilbert's eyes closed all the way and he sank to the bottom of the sea floor. Mathew looked around him and saw that all of the merpeople with them were doing the same.

Before Mathew could swim down to check on Gilbert, someone's face appeared right in front of him. Mathew let out a yell, trying to swim back, away from him. But the face followed him closely. All Mathew could focus on was those violet eyes boring right into him.

"Hello, prince Mathew," a voice spoke in their native tongue.

"What do you want from me?" Mathew managed out.

"You look so much like him," the man before him spoke, taking a hand and stroking Mathew's face. "It's a shame you two are so different. Then I could have you both…"

"Who are you?" Mathew could feel himself breathing hard.

"My name is Ivan," the man said simply and Mathew started to feel his eyelids droop. "And you will not be interfering with my plans anymore."

Mathew tried to force himself to stay awake, but sleep felt so nice right then. He smiled at the thought and allowed himself to sink into sleep, his mind going into an abyss.

* * *

_"Yeah, you aren't going to change my mind," Alfred rolled his eyes and Mathew giggled. This was about the third time since Gilbert found out Alfred was interested in the human world that he had tried to change Alfred's mind._

_"Your dad is going to be furious if he finds out," Gilbert rubbed at his temples._

_"Well, he's not going to find out," Alfred laughed. "C'mon Mattie, I have something cool to show you."_

_"Please don't tell me it's another sunken ship," Mathew sighed. Last time they went to one, Alfred was terrified and shaking from the 'ghosts.'_

_"Oi!" Gilbert yelled at them. "You are going to listen to me until I am done talking."_

_"Why?" Alfred stretched. "Last time I checked I have a higher position of authority than you do."_

_"And last time I checked I'm older than you," Gilbert snapped. "So you are going to listen to me."_

_"Make me," Alfred laughed._

_"Alfred," Mathew sighed. "You could at least listen to him."_

_"Yeah, I'm fine," Alfred assured him. "No matter what he says, I'm still gonna be interested in humans."_

_"Is this all because of that dream man of yours?" Mathew giggled._

_"Don't tell me you're in love with a human," Gilbert shook his head._

_"Is there a problem?" Alfred glanced at him._

_"You are not making life easy on me," Gilbert sighed. "Your father is going to-"_

_"My father is not going to find out," Alfred stated. "Unless you tell him and I doubt you want to unleash his wrath like that."_

_"I don't understand why you like the human world so much," Gilbert groaned. "Down here is so much better in the first place."_

_"That is your opinion," Alfred sighed. "Fine then. Go ahead and try to change my mind." He sat down on a rock, his navy blue tail moving up and down impatiently. "I'm waiting." Mathew let out a laugh. He knew from experience that nothing could change Alfred's mind about this subject. Mathew didn't let it bother him much. It was just a curiosity, so what harm could it do? He sat down next to his brother._

_"You have got to be kidding me," Gilbert shook his head._

_"I thought you were awesome and wouldn't back down from a challenge," Alfred sighed, looking off at nothing to the side. "Guess I was wrong…"_

_"Hey, I am awesome!" Gilbert growled at him._

_"Prove it," Alfred challenged. "Change my mind."_

_Gilbert huffed. "Fine then."_

_"Don't think too hard about it, now," Alfred laughed._

_"Shut up," Gilbert growled._

_"Ooo. I'm so terrified," Alfred mocked._

_"Shut up and listen, Alfred," Mathew elbowed him._

_"Fine," Alfred rolled his eyes._

_"Thank you," Gilbert sighed and then turned his attention to Alfred. "I will have you know, I have been on land, multiple times, and it is no place for you. Just look down here, it's beautiful. What else could you want?"_

_"I could say something right here, but I don't think I'm gonna," Alfred stretched and Mathew elbowed him again._

_"They work all day up there," Gilbert sighed, trying very hard to ignore Alfred. "And I know how much you love to laze around all day. Fish up on land don't really get the best treatment, either. I've seen what happens to them."_

_"Oh, pray tell," Alfred taunted._

_"If you could shut your trap, I would," Gilbert's eyes narrowed. "They get stuck in a little glass bowl, just waiting to get eaten by the lousy humans to eat them."_

_"They are not lousy," Alfred laughed. "And we eat fish, too, so nice try."_

_"Down here we have a lot more fun, too," Gilbert tried. "Like how all you have to do is lie on a rock all day. Up there you would have to work every single day of your life."_

_"Sounds like a challenge," Alfred grinned. "I'm getting bored. Mattie, come on." Alfred started swimming off._

_"Come on, prince," Gilbert groaned as Mathew got up to follow his brother._

_"Sorry," Mathew said quickly to him. "I've already tried." And then he swam out to follow his brother. "So, what do you want to show me?"_

_"It's more like tell you," Alfred looked so happy, like he couldn't contain his happiness._

_"What is it, Alfred?" Mathew asked._

_"I finally found my song!" he said happily._

_"Really? What is it?" Mathew marveled. Finding a song was important to merpeople, it was kind of like a rite of passage. Mathew still hadn't found his._

_"Well, just don't tell Dad," Alfred rubbed the back of his head._

_"Why not?" Mathew asked. "This is a big deal, he should know."_

_"Because it's a human song?" Alfred shrugged._

_"Really? They have songs?"_

_"Apparently," Alfred smiled. "They're language is so weird. I think I want to learn it."_

_"You want to learn Human?" Mathew asked._

_"Yeah, and you're gonna learn it with me. I already know some," Alfred said happily._

_"Why do I have to?" Mathew groaned._

_"Because I may take you up onto land someday," Alfred smiled._

_"You are not going to take me on land, okay?" Mathew crossed his arms._

_"Eventually, I'm gonna make you braver," Alfred scoffed. "It will start with you breaking the water. Then you're gonna get up on a rock. Just watch, it'll happen."_

_"I doubt it," Mathew sighed. "I'm perfectly happy down here."_

_"Well, that's only because you don't know what you're missing," Alfred grinned._

_"What am I missing?" Mathew chuckled._

_"Being able to sit on a beach, letting your…oh, what are they called…toes! Letting your toes dig into the warm sand and let water brush up against you without getting a scaly tail," Alfred said. "Dancing to music being played by instruments made out of brass and wood. Getting to wear…clothes! Clothes let you express yourself. It's like having a tail, but all over yourself. And you get to do things with your hair because the water doesn't always mess it up! And there are animals that swim through the air!"_

_"Now I think you're going crazy," Mathew rolled his eyes. But it all did sound nice…_

_"There's also this thing called fire," Alfred said happily. "People use it to keep warm and light places up. We can't have that here because water puts it out, but it's so beautiful and pretty and fun to watch. It switches between orange, yellow, and red. There's also this thing called seasons that happen up there. Every couple of months, the environment changes. When the world gets colder, it's called Autumn and all of the plants start to wilt and turn the most amazing colors. And then it gets even colder, in the Winter, and frozen water falls from the sky, the same color as Gilbert's hair! And, when it warms up, flowers start to bloom all over the place in the Spring. And water falls from the sky, but this time it's not frozen. And then it gets really hot and it's called Summer! And it all goes in a cycle, so each season keeps on coming back!"_

_"Really?" Mathew marveled. "That sounds nice…"_

_"The human world is so much more amazing than down here," Alfred sighed dreamily. "And it has him…"_

_"Just because you saved him from that ship wreck doesn't mean you were meant to be together," Mathew said._

_"You didn't see him," Alfred looked upward. "I watched the whole thing, too. His ship was falling apart, but he made sure everyone got off first. Then, when he jumped off the ship, he swam to where he thought land was. And he didn't give up until he was sinking to the bottom of the ocean. Even then, he was trying to get back up. Humans are so interesting, they never give up when life gets hard like we do. You know, I sang my song for him."_

_"How long have you known you found your song?" Mathew asked._

_"A while, but you're the first person I told," Alfred said quickly._

_"Apart from him," Mathew pointed out._

_"Can't you see, though?" Alfred asked. "Humans are just so amazing and their world is infinitely more interesting!"_

_"You know father will never let you get anywhere near them," Mathew said. He had hoped Alfred's obsession hadn't gotten this bad._

_"He doesn't have to know," Alfred said. "He hardly knows anything about my life in the first place."_

_"Which isn't a good way to start a relationship with him," Mathew sighed._

_"Look, he's had a stick up his ass ever since Mom died," Alfred said. "He's no fun to be around and I would just prefer to stay at the distance I am now from him."_

_"Just promise me you won't try to find him," Mathew pleaded._

_"For you," Alfred smiled softly at him. "I won't go looking for him."_

* * *

**Gotta love flashbacks... If it weren't for these things, this story would be, like, 5 chapters shorter. And here we have "Under the Sea," which was almost impossible considering Sebastian is Gilbert... And sort of "Part of Your World," but not so desperate sounding. We also got to see Alfred's point of view of what happened on this ship, and it didn't get randomly cut off by Anya/Ivan.**

**Reviews keep me happy and a happy writer keeps happy readers. And happy readers leave reviews.**

**I don't own Hetalia or the Little Mermaid. (wow, "My Jolly Sailor Bold" didn't make it into this chapter! Amazing!)**


	10. Saved

"Will you at least tell me if the sun has gone down yet?" Alfred asked Captain Carriedo. This was probably his hundredth question in the past 10 minutes. He had his wrist shackled to the headboard and that was it. He had lost motivation to get free a couple hours ago.

"Why does it matter to you?" Antonio asked, sitting back in his chair and propping his feet up on his desk.

"Because I like to know what time it is," Alfred said. Ever since a couple of hours ago, he had been feeling extremely drowsy, but he had forced himself to stay awake.

"From the amount of time that has passed, yes, it has most likely gone down by now," Antonio sighed.

"One more day…" Alfred muttered to himself.

"What was that?" Captain Carriedo asked.

"Nothing," Alfred grumbled. He was running out of time and, from the looks of things, he wasn't going to be going anywhere anytime soon. "You still gonna wed Arthur and Anya?"

"Why do you care?" Antonio scoffed.

"Because I like to know things," Alfred rolled his eyes. "If you don't want to tell me, though I guess I'll be fine."

"How about you tell me how you still have your legs," Carriedo asked him.

"Long story," Alfred sighed.

"We've got plenty of time," Antonio pointed out.

"Not really," Alfred said quietly. And then said louder, "It's also kinda personal, thank you."

"Well that's not my problem," Carriedo sighed.

"You know, I'm really starting to hate you," Alfred let his head rest in his hand.

"Good," Antonio grinned at him.

"Hey, since I'm a prince now, does that mean I don't have to call you captain?" Alfred asked. "You know, since I _am_ of higher authority and all."

"As long as you are on my ship, you are a part of my crew and as long as you are a part of my crew, I am your captain," Antonio glared at him.

"But I'm not really a part of the crew if I don't do anything, am I right?" Alfred tried and tugged lifelessly at the shackles on his wrist connected to the headboard.

"Tell me what it is like underwater," Antonio said randomly.

"Why do you care?" Alfred chuckled. "It's not like you're going there any time soon."

"I'm just wondering," Antonio shrugged. "Do you get gills or anything?"

"On my neck," Alfred shrugged. "I don't have them now, since I'm like this."

"How do you see when you are underwater?"

"I don't know, I've never really questioned it," Alfred sighed. "Is this just going to be like this for a while? Because I'm not really the best person to ask, I don't really check things very often."

"They're simple questions," Antonio stopped leaning back and started tapping his fingers on the table. "What color is your tail? Is it the same as your brother's?"

"Well, I've got nothing better to do," Alfred stretched. "Nope, mine's straight blue, no purple tint. I think he got that from Mom."

"That brings the question, how do mermaids mate?"

"That I don't know because I have never tried," Alfred said bluntly. "Please skip those questions or I won't answer any more."

"Fine then," Antonio sighed. "I take it that, since you're a prince, you are ruled by a king. Does that go for the whole 7 seas?"

"Yes it does," Alfred nodded.

"Is it true you can talk to sea creatures?"

"That I have done multiple times," Alfred said. "I have also talked to a bird. That was interesting. Apparently he'd been following me for a while. He said he belongs to Gilbert."

"That idiot that gave you away?" Antonio quirked an eyebrow.

"Yes, that person," Alfred nodded. "He was also the person who was trying to tell me that life on land sucks."

"Well, it does sometimes," Antonio nodded. "Do mermaids often go up on land?"

"Yes, we do that on occasion," Alfred nodded. "And stop calling us mermaids, I find that offensive."

"My apologies," Antonio said. "What do you call yourselves?"

"Merpeople, I guess?" Alfred shrugged. "That's just what me and Mattie call ourselves. And I guess Gilbert…"

"How often do you go above water?"

"A lot. Compared to the rest of us. Mattie hasn't even put his head above water until now."

"So, who is your father, who is the king of the seas?" Antonio asked.

"King Triton, dick bag of the world," Alfred scoffed.

"So you don't like him?" Antonio asked.

"I never want to see him again," Alfred nodded.

"Why?"

"You're getting personal here."

"What did he do to make you so mad?"

"My problems, not yours."

"Fine," Antonio sighed. "I'll try something else. Does your father keep a perfect world down there? Is there anything that goes wrong?"

"Nothing's perfect," Alfred rubbed at his eye and yawned. The drowsiness was getting worse.

"So, what mark the problems of your underwater world?" Antonio asked. "Like up here with killers or pirates?"

"Ivan," Alfred said simply and yawned again.

"Who is that?"

"Anya."

"Explain?"

"Anya is a sea warlock named Ivan," Alfred shrugged, yawning again.

"And how do I know this is truth?"

"Do I have a reason to lie?" Alfred stretched.

"So what I'm feeling really is a spell?" Antonio asked.

"Yup," Alfred nodded. His eyelids were drooping as he yawned again.

"Do you think there is any way that I can get past it?"

"Probably not," Alfred yawned and his eyes closed.

* * *

_Alfred could see the fire from a mile away. He didn't bother to tell anyone about it as he swam for it as fast as he could. He hadn't swam this fast before, but he just had to see what was going on._

_"EVERYONE! OFF THE SHIP NOW!" a voice boomed and Alfred could hear it, even in the water. People sank into the water all over the place around Alfred and he saw that several of them sank to the bottom, despite their best struggles to get up. There were far too many around Alfred to save them, and he didn't even know where he would take them if he saved them._

_Alfred swam up so that his head was above water. The fire was getting worse, he could tell from where he was on the side of the ship. He could still hear footsteps. Someone was still on board, trying to get the fire out. Alfred wished he could see what was happening, but there was no place that gave him a good vantage point to see anything._

_And then someone jumped off the side of the ship. All Alfred could see was a flash of blonde hair and then a splash. The man quickly appeared above water and gave the ship one last sparing glace and began swimming. He wasn't even looking and he almost ran into Alfred, if it weren't for him moving out of the way. This man was curious. Land was miles away and he was trying to swim. In the dead of night. When the water was freezing cold._

_Alfred followed him and the man actually made it pretty far, but he was slowing with just a mile left until land. He was sinking, like his body couldn't hold him above the water for much longer. And then his head dropped below the water line. Alfred followed him underwater and the man was still fighting to get back up. These humans just don't give up, do they?_

_Alfred could almost feel his heart break seeing the man's struggle slowing down as he sank deeper into the blue abyss. Before Alfred knew what he was doing, he dove for the man. He picked him up by his back and the underside of his knees. He swam upward as quickly as possible. Humans needed air, right?_

_The second they broke the water, the man started gasping for air and coughing out the water that had already made it inside of him. Alfred grinned, this man didn't look half bad at all… He started swimming. He knew where the nearest shore was and he would put him there. He had to make sure that the man made it safely. Alfred started using his thumb to mess with the bangs on the man's face, moving it out of the way so he could get a better look at him. His eyes wouldn't open, but there was something weird on his face. Were those...eyebrows?_

_"Who-" the man's question was cut off by a cough. "Who are you?" Another cough._

_Alfred grinned. He couldn't tell him that. But he most certainly did like this man, so he couldn't just say nothing. Then he remembered the song he had just found a week back. His song…_

Upon one summer's morning, I carelessly did stray,  
Down by the Walls of Wapping, where I met a sailor gay,  
Conversing with a bouncing lass, who seem'd to be in pain,  
Saying, William, when you go, I fear you will ne'er return again.

His hair it does in ringlets hang, his eyes as black as sloes,  
May happiness attend him wherever he goes,  
From Tower Hill, down to Blackwall, I will wander, weep, and moan,  
All for my jolly sailor bold, until he does return.

Come all ye pretty fair maids, whoever you may be  
Who love a jolly sailor bold that ploughs the raging sea,  
While up aloft, in storm or gale, from me his absence mourn,  
And firmly pray arrive the day, he home will safe return.

My heart is pierced by Cupid, I disdain all glittering gold,  
There is nothing can console me but my jolly sailor bold.

_"Th-that was-" the man tried to talk, but he started coughing and just couldn't stop._

_"Sh…" Alfred said soothingly and played with his hair some more. "You'll be okay…" Alfred sang the song again. This man was more than interesting, he was beautiful. He was perfect. Alfred didn't really believe in the idea of soul mates or anything sappy like that. But this man…_

_Alfred didn't notice for a while, but the man's eyes were closed. Alfred brought his ear to the man's mouth. He heard shallow breaths coming out and sighed with relief. It wasn't long until he made it to a shore. He had to scoot forward dramatically, and that was hard, to make sure the man was set in a safe place where the water wouldn't get to him. He only wished that he could get him to a safer place, make sure he would really be okay._

_But all he could do was set him in the sand in the middle of the night. He sang the song for him one more time. He almost left, but something in his stomach stopped him. Alfred turned towards the man, who's chest was rising and falling with every breath he took. His clothes were soaking wet so that they laid damply on him, not giving him much warmth at all. Alfred wished he could give him something. If not to keep him warm, then to know that someone who cared saved him._

_Alfred leaned over so that his face was just over that man's beautiful face. He leaned forward so that he could feel the huffs that came from the man's mouth as he breathed. And then he leaned down so that their lips touched. Even if it was for a fraction of a second, Alfred could feel the man kissing back._

_Alfred pulled away, smiling inwardly. And then he left._

_With just a hope that the man would be safe until morning._

* * *

**And another flashback. Because what is sleeping if you don't have a flashback, right? Sorry this chapter's a little short with nothing in it, really, but be prepared for next chapter, because that's when things start to get intense. You've been warned.**

**Reviews are lovely and well appreciated.**

**I don't own Hetalia, the Little Mermaid or "My Jolly Sailor Bold"**


	11. Time's Up

Alfred's eyes snapped open and he sat upright quickly. How long had he been asleep? This was not good. He only had one day left, Arthur was getting married, and Antonio was gone. As captain, he was the only person on the ship allowed to do stuff like marry people, right? Alfred struggled against the shackles on his wrist as he stood up. This couldn't be happening…

He looked around desperately for a nail or a splinter of wood or even just a key that could be lying on the floor. Anything would work. But there was nothing close enough for him to reach. Alfred tugged harder at the shackles and heard the sound of wood splintering from the headboard he was attached to. He pulled again and the headboard seemed to tilt. He tugged again and again and again until the thing was almost falling off. Alfred used his free hand to grab onto the top of it and pulled as hard as he could. It snapped right off and Alfred fell hard onto the floor.

He scrambled up, not caring to take off the shackles, he ran for the door, only to find that it was locked. Alfred slammed into it with his shoulder. He was running low on time, it didn't matter what he did at this point. He slammed into it again. And again. And again. And then, on his last slam, it finally flew open. Alfred almost tumbled to the floor again, but he caught himself and started running. He looked up at the sky, it was orange with the falling sun that Alfred could barely see on the horizon. He didn't have any time left.

He ran harder, he had to get to Arthur.

* * *

Mathew woke up with a start and found himself at the bottom of the ocean, lying on the sand. He swam up quickly, breaking the water to look at the sky. The sun was sinking, but it didn't feel like the day he fell asleep. How long was he out? Did Alfred run out of time yet?

"Birdie!" Gilbert's head broke the water. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Mathew said quickly. "Do you know where the ship went?"

"No," Gilbert shook his head. "I'm sorry."

"I have to find him," Mathew dove underwater and started swimming. He wasn't quite sure which direction to go, but he had a gut feeling and decided to follow it. He could hear Gilbert calling after him, and trying to keep up, but no one was ever able to keep up with Mathew when he was swimming full speed. Not even Alfred. This was the one thing Mathew could do better than him.

It didn't take long for Mathew to see something like a speck near the top of the water in the distance. He swam faster, if that was even possible, but stopped suddenly when the water started becoming rough. Was Alfred out of time? The fish below Mathew started swimming away and Mathew's gut told him to follow them, but he swam towards the speck even more, until it morphed into a ship. Mathew poked his head above water and saw ominous, dark clouds swirling around overhead. Lightning was striking and thunder shook him in the water. Two figures dove off the side of the ship. Mathew could barely see Alfred's tail before it entered the water and he didn't see the other. Mathew swam quickly to meet them.

* * *

"I do," Anya giggled and Arthur sighed dreamily. She was just perfect in every single way possible. And as soon as he said those two, simple words, she would be his forever. The mermaid that saved his life…He knew this was her.

"And you, Arthur?" Antonio asked. Arthur didn't like the idea of having someone like him wed them, but it was the best that he could do.

Arthur nodded happily. "I-" Arthur was dying to finish that two-worded sentence, but something dropped down out of nowhere. Something from the railing just above them jumped down in between him and Anya.

"Arthur, you can't do this," that voice was Alfred's. Soon, Alfred turned to face him and held on tightly to his shoulders.

"Alfred, not this again," Arthur sighed. Alfred quickly stole a look at something behind them.

"Trust me, she's not what you think," Alfred said quickly. Arthur looked at his wrist and saw that there was shackles hanging off, the part not on his wrist connected to wood. He looked behind himself again.

"Apparently you aren't what I thought either," Arthur pointed out.

"Don't be a brat about it," Alfred snapped and looked again. "You have to kiss me."

"What?" Arthur sputtered.

"Now!" Alfred's eyes showed that he was pleading.

"Alfred, I can't just-" Alfred looked behind himself again. "What the bloody hell are you looking at?"

"You don't understand! I'm running out of time!" Alfred yelled and looked again. "Please kiss me right now."

"I don't understand what you mean!" Arthur yelled at him. Alfred looked behind himself again, shaking his head.

"Arthur…I…" Alfred closed his eyes tightly and then, in a movement Arthur couldn't have guessed, pressed their lips together. Arthur's eyes widened and he tried to step back, but Alfred kept them together. He had to admit, though, kissing Alfred was far better than he expected and he nearly found himself fluttering his eyes closed and kissing back. However, Alfred was yanked away before Arthur could even blink.

Arthur had to blink a few times to register what was before his eyes. His precious Anya was holding Alfred by the scruff of his neck. Alfred seemed to be fighting with everything he had to get out of her grip, but nothing seemed to be working. Arthur couldn't even say a word before Anya transformed into a man before his very eyes. A man with violet eyes and hair the color of snow. Arthur shuddered away from him.

"A little too late, da?" the man grinned, speaking into Alfred's ears. Arthur recognized that accent, it was the same one Anya had.

"No," Alfred shook his head furiously and started breathing heavily. "I can't be out of time!"

"It's sad, isn't it?" the man laughed. Alfred's legs suddenly turned a dark navy blue, morphing into one. It looked almost like a…a tail. The clothes he was wearing before seemed to just fall off with his transformation. Alfred continued trying to writhe free from the man as he led him over to the side of the ship. The sea started becoming inexplicably rough and Arthur had to fight to stand up right. The man glanced up at them. "Do not follow. Unless you want to drown, da?"

Lightning flashed overhead and Arthur looked up to see that the sky was a cloudy gray. The thunder that followed shook Arthur and everyone else to the floor of the deck. The last Arthur saw of the two was Alfred glancing at him before they fell over the side of the ship.

Arthur quickly got up and ran over to the side of the ship, looking down where the water splashed.

"Point the cannons down," Arthur muttered.

"What are you saying?" Antonio walked over to him.

"Point the cannons down," Arthur said, louder, turning around to Antonio.

"Don't tell me you intend on fighting something like that," Antonio looked at him like he was crazy.

"You won't tell them, I will," Arthur threatened.

"You can't just give my crew orders like that," Antonio's eyes narrowed.

"Watch me," Arthur stated, then turned to the crew, who had been watching them. "Point the cannons down!" The crew looked at each other for a while, as if they were unsure of whether they should obey him or not. More lightning cracked overhead and the thunder nearly shook them all down to the floor again. "Do you want to watch the world end or do you want to stop that from happening! POINT THE DAMN CANNONS DOWN! As soon as you are ready to shoot, do it." Arthur snapped. Now they started getting to work. All of them going below deck.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Antonio snapped at him.

"I'm trying to make sure the world doesn't come crashing down on us," Arthur pointed at the sky just as a giant wave wracked the boat, knocking them both over.

"You are not captain of this ship," Antonio glared at him.

"I was a captain once," Arthur stood up. "So, don't worry, I know which direction to steer them in."

"You can't just take over my ship!"

"I just did."

* * *

"Let go of me, dammit!" Alfred tried to struggle out of Ivan's grip. His hand was around his waist as he was being dragged underwater. He could not say how happy he was to feel his tail back, but this was a very bad situation to have this happen with.

"But you are mine now, are you not?" Ivan grinned evilly.

"I am not your fucking toy, Ivan!" Alfred snapped at him.

"Yes you are," Ivan hummed and pulled Alfred into a lip lock. Alfred tried to scream and wriggle away, but nothing worked. It was quite a while before Ivan separated them. "You can kiss for so much longer underwater…"

"Shut the hell up and let me go," Alfred growled.

"You signed a contract, yes?" Ivan tickled his chin and Alfred shivered. "Therefore I don't have to let you go."

"Alfred?" Alfred felt his eyes widen at the sound of his brother's voice.

"My lucky day," Ivan smiled as Mathew neared them. Alfred looked over and saw Mathew slow down when he saw who he was with. Before Mathew had a chance to swim away, Ivan grabbed hold of his wrist, disabling him from getting very far.

"No!" Alfred yelled. "You can have me, but not my brother!"

"What is stopping me?" Ivan giggled. "You?"

"L-Let go of me!" Mathew tried desperately to wriggle his hand free. Ivan started swimming downward, leading them to an abyss.

"What are you going to get from this?" Alfred snapped, trying to stop Ivan from making progress.

"The world," Ivan said happily.

"How are you going to get the world from this?" Alfred growled at him. He looked down to see where they were going and found they were going towards Ivan's cave. Were they that closeto it this whole time?

"He will arrive in just a moment," Ivan smiled at them.

"What do you m-" Mathew asked, but he was cut off by a booming voice.

"IVAN!" Alfred's eyes widened. He knew that voice, it had scolded him so many times as a kid. Alfred looked over to the voice and, sure enough, he found his father swimming towards them, furious. Gilbert was following closely behind. Before Alfred could do anything, something appeared around his mouth that felt like cloth. Then something cold and metal wrapped it's way around his waist. Alfred took a closer look at it and found that it was attached to a heavy looking ball by a chain. The ball dragged Alfred down to the bottom of the sea floor. Alfred furiously tried to get free from the chain, but nothing worked. He looked over to his right and found that his brother was in the same predicament as he was.

"Yes, my king?" Ivan said very mockingly.

"You will give me my sons back," King Triton stated.

"What will you give me for them?" Ivan asked. Alfred kept on trying to wriggle free from his restraint, but nothing appeared to do him any good.

"I am not here to bargain," Triton growled at him. "You will give me them back or it is your head I will have."

"You probably cannot tell just by looking at them, Triton," Ivan smirked and Alfred nearly gasped. No one, not even him and his brother, called him by his first name in his presence. "But that restraint they have on them is getting tighter by the second. In just a few minutes, it will crush them. And, even if I were to die, the restraints would still hold them until their dying breath." Alfred stopped struggling. "And there is no way to undo this curse. You can try, but I have used a combination of my own dark magic and Alfred's magic."

Alfred stared down at his restraint. Sure enough, he saw it digging into the skin of his stomach.

"How is it you have Alfred's magic?" King Triton glared at him, his trident glowing red.

"We made a deal," Ivan said off-handedly. "So that he could be with the human he was in love with."

Triton stole a glance at Alfred, who looked down at the sand beneath him. "You will release them. Now." Triton threatened.

"How about _we_ make a deal?" Ivan proposed.

"I am not making a deal with you," King Triton snapped.

Alfred felt the restraint around his stomach tighten dramatically. It was starting to get hard to breath and he thought he heard Mathew squeak through the cloth over his mouth.

"They are running out of time, Triton," Ivan grinned. It tightened again and Alfred groaned in pain. He could have sworn he saw the restraint cutting into his skin. That assumption was proved right when he saw some of his blood float in front of his eyes. He looked over to Mathew with wide eyes, hoping he wasn't bleeding. Sadly, though, he was. And he had tears in his eyes from all of the pain. The only reason Alfred didn't have tears of his own was because he was more focused on their conversation. It tightened again and Alfred felt like his insides were about to squeeze out. Ivan wouldn't really kill him, right?

"What would I need to give up?" Triton asked quickly.

"Nothing much," Ivan sighed. "Just your trident and all of your magic." Alfred looked up at them, his eyes wide. It tightened again and he curled into himself in pain. "You better hurry up with your decision, or they might just die."

Alfred stole a glance up at them and he saw that all too familiar golden sheet of paper in front of his father's eyes. He shook his head and tried to call out to his dad not to do it, but it just came out as a muffled mess. King Triton looked over at them and Alfred shook his head at him.

"You will release them if I agree to this?" Triton asked.

Alfred felt it tighten again and he cried out in pain, curling up again. This was not fun.

"Perfect," Ivan hummed and Alfred felt the restraint disappear from around his waist as the cloth disappeared from around his mouth. He sighed with relief at being let go, but he quickly snapped his head up at his father.

"God, Dad, tell me you didn't," he pleaded

"Ah, he did," Ivan was holding the trident and grinning victoriously.

"No…" Alfred shook his head and watched as Mathew swam quickly over to their father's side. Alfred didn't even get a chance to move before he felt himself getting dragged over to Ivan. Once he got there, Ivan snaked his arm around Alfred's waist and pulled him close.

"You said I would get them both back," Triton glared at him.

"I would return this one," Ivan yawned, "but he is under contract that he is mine forever."

"Alfred…" Mathew muttered.

"I-I'm sorry," Alfred looked down. "I didn't mean for it to turn out like this…"

Out of nowhere, a giant BOOM sounded off, making Alfred flinch. Alfred looked over Ivan's shoulder to see that there was a cannon ball right there in front of them, aimed at them. Ivan had the trident out, poking the cannon ball. The ball dropped to the bottom of the ocean quickly. Ivan growled, causing Alfred to shudder. I giant whirlpool seemed to circle around their tails and shot them upward.

"Dad!" Alfred called out as they rocketed away. "Ivan, let me go!"

"Wouldn't dream of it, Alfred," Ivan purred and Alfred saw that they were coming up to the ship. Alfred could see from their position that the cannons were pointed down at them.

* * *

"How long does it take to fire a bloody cannon?" Arthur snapped irritably.

"You would always take this long," Antonio sighed.

"Shut it, Carriedo," Arthur glared at him.

"I do not understand why this matters to you so much," Antonio rolled his eyes. "It doesn't involve us anymore."

"In case you haven't noticed," Arthur sighed. "We will all die if this persists. Eventually, a wave will come that will be big enough to destroy this ship, leaving us all stranded. There is a storm brewing and I don't want to die because of it."

"Is it for the storm? Or for the kid?" Antonio asked.

"What are you talking about?" Arthur scoffed.

"I saw what you looked like after he kissed you," Antonio stated. "You are doing this to save him."

"I am n-" Arthur was cut off by the BOOM of a cannon that fired. He immediately rushed to the side of the ship, looking to see where it fired. It didn't look like anything changed… Suddenly, all of the cannons broke through the side of the ship, launching into the ocean and taking the crew with them. Something shot out of the water and Arthur wheeled backwards so it wouldn't hit him.

"Antonio, something has gone wrong," Francis rushed onto the deck just in time for whatever shot out of the water to land heavily onto the deck.

It was that man, Arthur marveled, that stole Alfred away. His face was red with rage and Arthur noticed that he was holding a struggling Alfred close to him using one arm. The other arm held what looked like a giant, golden fork with only three prongs, the middle one longer than the rest. The man had legs, but Alfred still had his tail. It looked as if Alfred was trying everything he could to try to get away. When he noticed where he was, his eyes widened. He said something to the man, but it definitely wasn't English. It was a garbled mess, but the man seemed to understand it perfectly. Soon, Alfred was slammed backwards, into the side railing. Arthur winced when he heard the wood splinter and Alfred's head whipped back. He eyes closed and his body went limp.

"Now that he won't get in the way," the man spoke in his Russian accent, "let's talk about you shooting at me."

* * *

**I'm a little rushed with this today, as I am being forced against my will to got to Church, so I can't say anything very...well what I say here is just boring so it's not much of a loss, now is it?**

**I love reviews, so please leave some.**

**I don't own Hetalia or the Little Mermaid.**


	12. Fight

"Now that he won't get in the way, let's talk about you shooting at me."

"He did it," Antonio said quickly. It was basically just a mutter and Arthur could barely hear it.

Arthur nearly turned his head to glare at him, but the man appeared in front of him almost impossibly quick. The thing in his hand was glowing red as he reached a finger out to touch Arthur's forehead. The second it made contact, Arthur felt himself fly backwards. He didn't know which direction was up until he felt his back slam into the railing of the ship. He was able to watch as he fell backwards, over the railing and started falling. His hands quickly jutted out, gripping onto the side of the boat before he fell too far.

"Did you…kill them?" Francis asked, his voice thick with concern.

"My Alfred is safe," the man spoke and Arthur swung his legs so that his feet were on the same ledge as his hands. He quickly moved his hands up to grip onto the spindles of the railing of the ship. "That putrid Arthur, on the other hand, is probably sinking to the bottom of the ocean, da?"

"Don't sound too happy about it now," Arthur muttered to himself quietly, gritting his teeth. He slowly climbed his hands up and was able to look onto the deck.

"Maybe you should follow him," the man started walking towards Antonio and Francis. Arthur quickly moved his feet so that they were just below his hands and stood up.

"The least you could do is give me your name before you kill me," Arthur sighed, swinging his legs over to the other side of the railing and sitting down on it. "I know it's not Anya."

"Are you so sure about that?" the man grinned and tilted his head. He slowly changed into Anya, his hair growing longer and his eyes turning brighter.

"You're not affecting me like that again," Arthur quickly closed his eyes, standing up from the railing. He knew his way around this ship pretty well, even with his eyes closed. If he could just get to… Arthur started running towards the stairs, barely opening his eyes so he could make it up the stairs safely.

"I don't need to affect you," Anya's sweet voice entered Arthur's ears, but he ignored it. "I just need to affect them."

Arthur shook his head, he knew he meant Antonio and Francis. He didn't know how powerful this man was, but if he was going to have even the slightest chance to defeat him he needed help.

"Good for you," Arthur sighed, running up to the wheel of the ship. "Sorry guys, but I hope this works," Arthur grabbed hold of the wheel and turned it sharply to the right. He felt himself lurch to the side with the ship and looked down at the deck to find that Antonio and Francis had flown to the right, slamming their heads into the railing. Even Alfred with his tail slid down to the right. He still didn't wake up. Anya stayed glued to her spot, but turned back to that man again.

"If you must know," the man sighed, obviously getting irritated at Arthur, "my name is Ivan."

"Interesting name there," Arthur said casually, steadying himself.

"Mon dieu, Arthur!" Francis shook his head, which he apparently hit against the railing.

"¿Qué el diablos?" Antonio snapped.

"Only way I could think of to get you two to snap out of it," Arthur leaned on the wheel.

"Don't steer my ship," Antonio glared at him and Arthur backed away, his hands up in mock surrender.

"You don't seemed very concerned," Ivan said calmly. "Considering your predicament."

"You tell me, should I be concerned?" Arthur tilted an eyebrow at him. Right now, he just looked like a silly man holding a giant, golden fork.

Ivan giggled. "Da." He grabbed onto the fork with both hands and lifted it above the floor slightly before slamming it back down. It was still glowing red slightly, Arthur noticed. The wood seemed to crack beneath it. The crack steadily grew bigger and bigger, going along a line down the middle of the ship. Eventually, the line got to Arthur, the crack going just between his legs. He tumbled over to the left and the ship seemed to shudder massively as it tore itself in half. Arthur scrambled to his feet, going to the railing, as the other side was starting to sink towards the water.

A bright light flashed, nearly blinding Arthur, and the thunder that followed after was enough to make his teeth chatter. He looked up and the middle mast practically blew up, splintering everywhere. The sail had holes burning in it as it fell into the water and started sinking to the bottom.

"Should you be concerned?" Arthur felt like Ivan's voice was in his head when he spoke and it made him shiver and he held on tightly to the railing so he wouldn't fall over. Ivan appeared in front of him, well, all Arthur could see of him was his dark violet eyes. "You tell me."

Arthur felt something painful hit him right across the face and he flew through the air yet again. He felt his back slam against hard wood and he flew back in the air until he slammed onto his stomach. He gripped onto whatever he slammed onto tightly so he didn't fall over. He felt a wave of water slam into him and the salt water shoved its way down his throat and up his nose. He started coughing uncontrollably.

He glanced up and saw the other half of the ship, leaning in towards him as it sank. A stunned Alfred looked up, trying to open his eyes and stay awake. He looked around, alarmed. He obviously didn't have a clue of what happened. He blinked around a couple times before he became transfixed on something underneath the water. His mouth started moving, like he was talking to it. He crawled towards the edge of his half of the boat, his tail flopping around uselessly.

Alfred glanced up for a second and he and Arthur locked eyes for just a second before Alfred dove into the water.

Arthur heard thunking footsteps coming near him and he looked up, to see Ivan coming towards him. Arthur looked around and found that he was on the side of the ship, but it was becoming level since the other side was sinking to the ocean. He still had to cling to the wood to stay on, though. Ivan continued, casually walking towards him.

"You will not be getting in my way again," Ivan snarled at him and Arthur shuddered. He could clearly see a dark purple aura surrounding him and it seemed to grow as time passed. When he came close to Arthur, he lifted up his foot and slammed it down on Arthur's left hand. Arthur cried out in pain, the only thing keeping that hand on the ship now being his foot. The second Ivan lifted his foot up, Arthur's hand fell to his side. He gritted his teeth and winced in pain. Ivan lifted his foot up again, but he was cut off by the sound of a gunshot.

Arthur and Ivan looked over to the source at the same time. Antonio, clinging to the railing of the far half of the ship that wasn't sinking to the ground, was holding his pistol, aimed right at them. Smoke was rising out of it. Francis was next to him, looking at him like he was crazy. Arthur looked up at Ivan quickly, but he didn't seem to have anything wrong with him. No bullet wound... Arthur tried to bring his other hand back to the wood he was clinging to, but it hurt to much to use.

"I shall deal with you next, da?" Ivan giggled and slammed his foot down on Arthur's other hand. Arthur cried out again, but Ivan dug his foot in even more. Arthur could have sworn he felt bones breaking in his hand.

And then Ivan let go. Arthur's eyes went wide as he slid down the side of the ship, towards the water. His hands were unable to find a good grip and his left hand hurt whenever he tried to use it. So he just fell into the deep, ice cold ocean.

* * *

A giant shock woke Alfred up. He looked around and saw the sail of the ship fall right in front of him. The ship was split in two, and he could feel himself sliding towards the water. Something came out of the water, but didn't break it. Alfred blinked a few times to steady his vision, it was Mathew.

"Mattie!" Alfred said excitedly.

"Alfred, we have a plan," Mathew said quickly.

"What is it?" Alfred asked curiously. If it would save Arthur, he would do anything.

"Just come while you have the chance," Mathew said and Alfred nodded. He looked up for a brief second, and he found himself looking right at Arthur, looking into his emerald eyes. He looked into them for a few seconds before he dove into the water with Mathew.

"What's your plan?" Alfred asked him the second he was in the water.

"Grab onto the sail," Mathew said and moved towards the mast now sinking down to the sea floor. Alfred went to move, but he heard a loud, sharp sound ring through his ears. Before Alfred could try to move again, something splashed into the water over to his left. He saw a familiar streak of blonde hair as it sunk down.

"Arthur!" Alfred gasped, swimming quickly to the man's aid. Mathew swam with him and they both helped him to the surface of the water, where he started gasping for air. "What do we do now?" Alfred asked.

"I have an idea," Mathew stated, in English, which caused Arthur to look up at him. "Hold your breath." Arthur looked at him like he was crazy for a second, but obeyed, taking in a deep breath. Alfred helped bring Arthur down, below the water line.

"What are you doing?" Alfred asked questioningly.

"Just hold him there really quick," Mathew said and Alfred obeyed. Mathew closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. Then he held out his hands and opened his eyes with a look of concentration on his face. All of a sudden, a bubble appeared around Arthur. Alfred barely had enough time to get away.

"Jesus Christ, Mattie!" Alfred yelled as he swam away. "What was that?" Arthur opened his eyes and let out his breath. He looked around in marvel as he stood in the bubble.

"I never thought it would work…" Mathew stared at the bubble. "And I expected it to just go around his head."

"So we really do have magic…" Alfred stared at the bubble. "How long will it last?"

"Long enough for us to do what we have to," Mathew looked back to the sinking sail. "We better get to work if my plan is going to be effective."

* * *

Arthur watched with curiosity from his strange pocket of air as Alfred and Mathew set to work. He wasn't quite sure what they were doing and he couldn't understand the language they were talking in, but they seemed to be working efficiently. They had gotten hold of the sail and were working on doing…something with it. He wasn't quite sure what, though…

He couldn't help but look up at the ship. Both halves were halfway sunken by now. He hadn't heard anymore gunshots and he was wondering how those two were doing against Ivan… He wished he could be up there with them, he felt rather useless just sitting there doing nothing. A giant wave came up and wracked the ship and his bubble moved slightly. That gave Arthur an idea. He slammed into the side of the bubble and it moved. He tried to jump to make it move up, but, when he fell down, the bubble moved down. Arthur groaned in frustration. All of a sudden, the man with white hair, Gilbert, swam up to them and they started talking in that garbled mess they called a language. Then, Gilbert stole a glance in his direction and his eyes narrowed. He started yelling at the two and Mathew appeared to be trying to calm him down. Gilbert rolled his eyes and swam towards Arthur. His tail was a startling red that Arthur could not say he expected.

"What the hell are you doing down here?" Gilbert asked him.

"Can you get me up there?" Arthur asked, glancing up at the ship halves.

"What?" Gilbert stared at him like he was crazy.

"Can you get me up there?" Arthur repeated himself.

"Why do you want to go up there? Ivan could kill you," Gilbert stared at him.

"He's already tried twice," Arthur stated. "I know very well what he can do. I don't like the feeling of sitting here, useless. I need to do something to help, I don't care what."

"Alfred would kill me if he knew I helped you do something like this," Gilbert groaned, running his hand through his hair. "Fine, but you need to do what I tell you. I have a plan that will help these two." Arthur nodded as Gilbert took hold of the bubble and started swimming up. He told Arthur his plan, swimming to the half of the ship that Antonio and Francis were on.

Surprisingly, the bubble popped the second it broke the water, so Arthur had to keep himself up. He swam over to the sinking ship and gripped onto the sides.

He turned his head to Gilbert once he was completely out of the water. "Thank you," he nodded towards him and Gilbert nodded back.

"Don't tell Alfred that I helped you," Gilbert warned and dove back underwater, his tail the only thing to say "good-bye." Arthur wasted no time climbing back up the side of the ship and quietly poked his head over the side railing. It was far up in the air by now, so he was nearly lying down when he looked over the railing. Francis was still clinging onto this side of the ship, but Antonio was on the other side, confronting Ivan. Well, it was more like Ivan had his hands around his neck and then he was launched off to the side like a rag doll. His gun slid down the ship and into the water.

Arthur quickly crawled over to the side where Francis was. Arthur scoffed when he could see Francis was shaking like the coward he was.

"Give me your sword," Arthur said, slowly making his way to the other side of the railing.

"Arthur? You're alive?" Francis looked at him in wonder.

"Yes, Francis, I'm alive," Arthur scoffed. "That's why I'm here. Now give me your sword."

"Why?" Francis asked and Arthur saw Ivan turn towards them.

"If you want his attention on me and not on you," Arthur said quickly, "you will give me your sword."

"Yes sir," Francis said when he saw the outrage on Ivan's face. He took out his sword and handed it to Arthur. Francis then sank away from Arthur quickly.

"What the hell are you doing alive?" Ivan snapped.

"Scared of ghosts, Ivan?" Arthur taunted, weighing the sword in his hand. He remembered what Gilbert had told him about his plan. If he was going to do this right, he needed to be in the middle of the two ships. Arthur allowed himself to slip down the side of the ship until he was close to the water.

"I do not believe they exist," Ivan said simply. "I usually squash the idea of them like a bug."

"You have fun with that," Arthur stumbled, trying to stand up right on the tilt of the ship. "I'm a bit busy in the real world, so I can't bother to care about your prattle."

Ivan launched forward and something hard hit Arthur right in the stomach and he slammed into the side of the ship. The wood made an ominous creaking noise around him and that fork was pointed right at his chest.

"No mistakes this time," Ivan's eyes narrowed. "I will make sure you are dead this time."

Arthur felt something poking at his skin right where the fork was. And then he felt it break his skin and he groaned in pain.

"I'm sorry to say," Arthur glanced down at the water, where he saw Alfred and Mathew swim by with the sail, "but you won't be getting very far with your plan this time."

"Why?" Ivan tilted his head. "You can't stop me."

"Alfred can," Arthur grinned. He saw the sail come up, out of the water, but then his vision went black as he felt the cloth surround him. He felt Ivan start to struggle next to him, and then they entered the water and Arthur couldn't breathe. The fork started glowing red again and Arthur tried to take in some air, but that just brought water to sting in his throat.

A slit formed in the cloth surrounding them and Arthur swam up, still clutching onto the sword Francis gave him. He gasped for air the second he came up, coughing out the water. Then he saw that Ivan surfaced next to him. Arthur quickly swam for him and jumped on him, wrapping his arms around his neck.

"Get off me," Ivan growled. "I will kill you!"

"I don't-" Arthur felt them duck underwater and stopped talking until they surfaced again. He still refused to let go. "I don't care!"

"Arthur!" Alfred's voice rang out as Arthur clung onto Ivan for dear life so he wouldn't drown. "What the hell are you doing?"

Arthur felt something hard slam into his stomach and he cried out in pain just in time to go underwater again.

"I'm not letting go," Arthur stated when they resurfaced. The fork turned red again.

"I don't care if it means Alfred gets hurt in the process, you are going to die," Ivan growled as Arthur felt a whirlpool around them. They started going around and around in multiple circles. Arthur was barely able to hang on.

"Ivan! Stop this!" Alfred yelled, he sounded disoriented, like he was going around in the whirlpool as well.

Arthur felt himself slipping and his left hand was starting to hurt extremely bad from having to hold on so tightly. The more they went around in the whirlpool, the faster they went, and the less Arthur could hold on to Ivan.

Eventually, though, he did slip, letting go of Ivan. His right hand still held the sword and Arthur felt a lot of resistance when he let go. He plunged into the ocean around the whirlpool, which was slowing down. The water just in front of him was starting to die a deep red. He dared to look at the sword and it was coated in red. Arthur immediately let go of the sword and he felt something grab onto him and pull him up, above the water.

"Arthur, you're okay," Alfred's voice started coaxing him. "You'll be okay."

"D-did I just…" Arthur started breathing heavily as the sea started calming down and the sky overhead started clearing up.

"Arthur, you're fine," something started petting Arthur's hair, but he paid it no mind. "You're safe, that's all that matters."

"But I just…" Arthur could feel his eyes getting wider. "I just killed…"

"Sh…" Alfred tried to calm him down. "No one got hurt, that's all that matters."

"But I just killed someone," Arthur could feel his heart beating in his head. This couldn't be happening. He didn't just…He couldn't have just…He killed someone…He killed Ivan…

Arthur's vision started turning black and his breathing stated to even out. Suddenly, he forgot why he was freaking out…His eyelids felt heavy as he drifted off, the last words he hearing being, "Arthur? Arthur!"

* * *

"Arthur?" Alfred shook Arthur in his arms. His eyes closed and he smiled, like he was in a happy dream. "Arthur!" He tried shaking him, but that didn't wake him up.

"He was one of three that survived the shipwreck, correct?" King Triton broke the surface of the water, looking at Alfred. He had his trident back and the water was slowly clearing of the blood red.

"Um, yeah," Alfred held Arthur close to him. His father wasn't going to take him away from him right? He couldn't do anything like that to him. Mathew broke the water next to them.

"Mathew, go get the two on the ship," Triton ordered and Mathew nodded, going underwater and towards the ship.

"What are you going to do to them?" Alfred demanded.

"Gilbert told me what happened during your time as human," Triton stated. "These three are the last of the crew that kidnapped you. They must be tried for their crimes."

"Dad! The other two may be criminals, but Arthur isn't!" Alfred argued just as Mathew came up to them with Gilbert, each with a passed out Francis or Antonio.

"He was a part of the crew, therefore he is still a criminal," his father stated.

"I won't let you take him if you intend on trying him and killing him," Alfred glared at him.

"I'm afraid you have no choice in this," Triton stated and Alfred started feeling drowsy.

"Dad…" he muttered as the world started fading to black. "How could you?"

* * *

**Action scenes are evil. I can't write them to save my life, so I'm sorry if this sucked... Two chapter left in this story... And we're not past the worst part yet.**

**Please review, because that's the nice thing to do.**

**I don't own Hetalia or the Little Mermaid.**


	13. Goodbye

Arthur woke up with a splitting headache. His vision was blurry when he tried to open his eyes. He couldn't see very well, it was dark.

"Oh, he is finally waking up," Francis' voice chimed in Arthur's ears and a scowl traced across his face.

"Don't tell me you knocked me out, Francis," Arthur rolled his eyes, holding onto his head and closing his eyes as he sat up. He had the weirdest dream…

"I wish, mon cher," Francis said flirtatiously and Arthur groaned. It was weird, whatever he was sitting on didn't feel quite right. It wasn't the ground, and it wasn't the ship. It wasn't a bed…

"Shut it, frog," Arthur snapped at him. "Not in the mood. I had the strangest dream…"

"Did it have anything to do with mermaids?" Antonio's smug voice asked and Arthur looked up at him.

"How did you…" he lost his voice somewhere in there when he saw where he was. It seemed as though the three were in a bubble…underwater. "Jesus Christ…" he muttered and tried to back away, but his back just hit the side of the bubble. Antonio and Francis were in front of him, Antonio on the right and Francis to the left.

"Oui, I can't believe it was real, either," Francis grinned, looking up. Arthur looked up, too. He couldn't even see the surface of the water, they were so deep. He looked down and their little bubble was sitting on a podium, which was on the sea floor.

"Turns out, we are prisoners," Antonio sighed. He nodded his head towards outside the bubble. When Arthur looked he saw Gilbert lounging on a rock nearby. "He is in charge of watching us, from what I can tell."

"I do not know which language they are speaking," Francis said. "That's the most we could gather while you were asleep."

"Interesting," Arthur sighed. He shook his head lightly, like that would get the situation to make more sense. It didn't. "So, why are we prisoners at the bottom of the ocean?"

"You kidnapped the prince and held him hostage," Gilbert spoke and all of the three in the bubble turned their heads his way.

"Technically, that was him," Arthur glared at Antonio. Gilbert had turned around from his rock and was looking at them with his freaky red eyes.

"Technically, you were all a part of the crew, meaning you all had a part in it," Gilbert sighed.

"So we are being tried as criminals?" Francis asked.

"Does that mean we are going to be sentenced to death?" Arthur blinked. This could not be happening.

"That is currently undecided," Gilbert said. It was obvious he was trying hard to sound official. It was almost like it wasn't second nature to him…like he was acting.

"Last time I saw you," Antonio grinned, "you didn't have a stick up your culo."

"Oui, I thought you were cool," Francis chuckled. Even Arthur could tell that this was making Gilbert irritated. "What happened?"

"I will have you know I am awesome!" Gilbert swam towards them. "I am beyond awesome! I am the most awesome thing on this planet!"

"Prove it, amigo," Antonio laughed.

Gilbert twitched.

"Oh, calm down, lads," Arthur smiled. "It's obvious he just has a fragile ego. Don't take advantage of it."

"_I _am the awesome captain of the guard for King Triton!" Gilbert snapped. "_I_ am in charge of making sure the entire ocean stays under control. _I _have gone onto land more than any other merperson in the world! I. Am. Awesome!"

Antonio yawned.

"That is not really proving anything to me," Francis stretched, leaning back in the bubble.

"I helped kill Ivan," Gilbert tried.

"No, you didn't," Arthur scoffed.

"And how would you know, arschloch?" Gilbert snapped at him.

"I was there when he got killed?" Arthur shrugged. "And you weren't there."

"So that's why Alfred was holding you…" Gilbert muttered to himself. "Wait, I told you just to be a distraction, not go into the fight, dummkopf."

"I was being a distraction," Arthur stated. "Until I was dragged under with him."

"And Arthur," Francis said. "I would like to know what you did with my sword."

"You're probably not getting that back, mate," Arthur rubbed the back of his head. "It's at the bottom of the ocean by now."

"You dropped it?" Francis gaped at him.

"After I…killed Ivan with it…" Arthur muttered.

"You're the one who did that?" Gilbert's eyes went wide. "Alfred's been saying it was him."

"Why would he say that?" Arthur asked.

"_You _killed Ivan?" Antonio demanded.

"I don't believe it," Francis shook his head.

"It's probably the only thing keeping you from a death penalty right now," Gilbert said.

"But Ivan was a criminal," Arthur muttered.

"This imbécile could not have killed Ivan," Francis tried.

"Down here, we go by different rules," Gilbert sighed. "Killing is a crime, no matter who was killed."

"Alfred said he did it?" Arthur asked.

"I do not believe they are listening to us," Antonio sighed.

"Want to test that theory?" Francis asked.

"His father nearly killed _him_," Gilbert stated.

"Go for it, Francis," Antonio spoke.

"Why would he take the fall for me?" Arthur wondered out loud.

"Probably the same reason he made that deal with Ivan," Gilbert said and his vision went to look above Arthur's head. "Are you aware you have a Frenchman on your back?"

"Yes, I am aware," Arthur sighed. Francis was apparently standing up by now and was leaning over Arthur. He moved his hand to stroke Arthur's eyebrows.

"You know, Arthur," Francis said seductively, "I've always thought your eyebrows were sexy."

"Sod off, Francis," Arthur elbowed him in the shin, causing him to fall over behind him.

Gilbert laughed. "What is with your huge ass eyebrows?"

"They are not that big!" Arthur snapped, reaching up to touch them. He always hated it when Francis and Antonio would tease his eyebrows. Not this man, too…

"I think they're bigger than your eyes," Gilbert swam backwards, laughing.

"I have always thought so, too!" Francis laid on his back, laughing.

"Finally, we can agree on something," Antonio chuckled.

"Glad to see you two are making friends at my expense," Arthur sighed.

Something seemed to catch Gilbert's eye, because he suddenly stopped laughing and straightened himself out, making sure to distance himself from their bubble. Arthur looked over in the direction Gilbert was looking and saw two figures swimming towards them.

He kicked Francis and Antonio, who were still laughing. "Hush up," he snapped at them.

"Why does it matter?" Francis chuckled. "We can't understand a word they're saying."

"Yes, but they can understand us," Arthur stated. He looked back over and the two figures became clearer. One of them, Arthur knew. It was Alfred, but something changed about him. Sure he was good looking before, but now he was practically glowing. That odd cowlick was gone, probably because his hair was wet, and half of his body was a navy blue tail. The man next to him, Arthur thought he looked vaguely familiar. He had graying hair and a long, graying beard. His eyes were a shimmering blue, just like Alfred's, and his tail was pure green. He was holding that fork that Ivan had.

He watched as they came closer and locked eyes with Alfred, who waved lightly at him before turning all of his attention to the other man. He appeared to be complaining to the man, but the man didn't seem to care. He turned his attention to Gilbert and started conversing with him. Alfred did not seem amused with being ignored and started pestering the man.

"So do you know who that is?" Arthur asked Francis and Antonio.

"No clue," Antonio shrugged. "Since Alfred is always with him, I think it might be safe to say that he is his father, King Triton."

"Triton," Arthur repeated the name.

"That's not a very stylish name, now is it?" Francis scoffed.

Alfred's voice rising caused Arthur to turn his attention back to them. He appeared to be arguing with "Triton." But he was losing, badly. He pointed at Arthur and Triton's attention snapped to him. Arthur shivered, his glare was intense. He turned back to Alfred and his voice boomed with outrage.

"I think you did something," Francis whispered.

"Shut it, frog," Arthur growled.

"Well, he is in love with you," Antonio shrugged. "I don't think Triton likes the idea of a merperson with a human."

"Great," Arthur sighed.

"So, if I figure right," Francis said, "he came onto land looking for you, since he was in love. And then his father sent out a search party for him, since he's a prince. And that has led to us being trapped here…So this is all your fault, Arthur."

"It's not all my fault!" Arthur yelled at him. "What about that jerk!" he pointed behind himself at Antonio. "He took him hostage."

"So we're pointing fingers now," Antonio sighed. "Very mature."

Suddenly, Triton said something to Gilbert and Alfred's eyes went wide. He started talking to his father in a panic, speaking very quickly.

"What do you think happened?" Francis asked.

"I don't know," Arthur sighed. Triton started swimming away and Alfred followed, still arguing with him. Alfred stole a glance back to look at Arthur and waved at him, smiling slightly. Arthur nodded in return.

"So, what was that all about, Gilbert?" Antonio asked.

"I think they're gonna kill you," Gilbert muttered, still watching as they left.

"Arthur, look what you did!" Francis yelled. "This is all your fault!"

"Don't blame everything on me, frog!" Arthur snapped.

"Technically, it is your fault," Gilbert said, finally looking towards them again.

"What?" Arthur blinked.

"If Alfred hadn't found you and decided he was in love, he wouldn't have become obsessed with getting on land," Gilbert stated. "And then his father wouldn't have gotten pissed at him and destroyed everything he had found from land. Which then leads to him not making a deal with a sea warlock obsessed with power and, apparently, Alfred. Then he wouldn't have gone on land, meaning we wouldn't have searched for him. And Ivan wouldn't have followed him on land. And then there's also that thing when Ivan went on a rampage with both Alfred's and Triton's magic. You three would still be sailing happily through the ocean, pillaging villages as you pleased."

"So it is Arthur's fault," Antonio sighed.

"You have got to be kidding me," Arthur murmured.

"Ever since your last ship sunk," Gilbert continued, "and Alfred saved your sorry ass, he's been causing trouble trying to find you again. Now he has found you."

"Alfred saved me?" Arthur gaped. A part of him always expected that, but it was weird thinking that was him.

"You were saved by a mermaid?" Francis asked.

"Since when?" Antonio laughed.

"So the man you've been obsessed with has been obsessed with you this whole time," Francis chuckled. "How does that feel?"

"Jesus Christ," Arthur blinked.

* * *

"You can't seriously be thinking about actually killing them!" Alfred yelled at his father as they swam back to the castle.

"Why shouldn't I?" Triton asked. "They are good-for-nothing humans that kidnapped you for several days."

"Most of the time, I was there because I wanted to be!" Alfred argued. "I finally found the person I love, why can you not accept that?"

"Because he's a human!" Triton snapped.

"What the hell does that matter!" Alfred yelled. "I'm starting to think you're just killing him so I'll have to find someone else! Is killing just at tool to get what you want now?" Triton didn't say anything this time. Alfred stopped swimming. "If that's the case, then I guess I can just kill myself and you wouldn't care, right?" Triton turned around and started to say something, but Alfred cut him off. "Save it, I don't care anymore." Alfred turned away and started swimming back to where they had that bubble. He had an idea, but he would need Gilbert's help. And maybe Mathew, if he could find him…

"Gil," Alfred said quickly when he came up to the bubble. He tried really hard not to steal a glance at Arthur.

"Yes, Alfred?" Gilbert asked. It looked like he was just talking with the three.

"You're starting to like two of the prisoners, right?" Alfred asked. Arthur had just woken up, but the other two had been awake for a while. Plenty of time to get to know them.

"What are you trying to get at?" Gilbert crossed his arms in front of himself.

"I'm thinking about breaking them free," Alfred said.

"You do realize that the nearest land is a while away, right?" Gilbert raised an eyebrow.

"That's why I would need your help," Alfred said. "And you like those two enough to bring them to land, right?"

"Sure they're cool," Gilbert scoffed, "but they're not worth getting in trouble with your father."

"I thought you would do it," Alfred sighed, turning around and slowly swimming away. "Considering you're so, totally, awesome. But I guess I overestimated you…"

"I know what you're trying to do, there," Gilbert sighed. "And it's not gonna work."

"I guess even awesome people have their limits," Alfred let out a deep breath. "Or, maybe you're just not awesome after all…"

"You're not affecting me," Gilbert said, but Alfred could tell by the sound of his voice that he was cracking. His teeth were clenched.

"Maybe I should ask Ludwig," Alfred hid his grin by looking away. "He might prove to be more awesome then you, like I've always expected…"

"Oi!" Gilbert snapped, turning Alfred around and gripping onto his shoulders. "I am so much more awesome than my little brother!"

"So then you'll help me?" Alfred asked simply.

Gilbert twitched. "I hate you sometimes."

"But you gotta love me, right?" Alfred smiled. "Everyone loves a hero!"

"Wipe that smile off your face," Gilbert shook his head. "Fine I'll help you."

"Sweet!" Alfred pumped his fist in the water. "I'm gonna go find Mattie! Don't pop the bubble 'till I come back, kay?"

"Wait, we're popping the bubble?" Gilbert demanded as Alfred swam away to find his brother.

But, soon, the smile was drained from Alfred's face. He might be saving Arthur, but he wouldn't get to see him again…

Ever.

* * *

"Hold your breath," Gilbert said suddenly and Arthur looked at him, confused.

"Why?" Antonio asked.

"Because I'm awesome and I don't want you to drown," Gilbert stated.

"What do you mean by-" Arthur started but Gilbert cut him off.

"Just hold your breath," Gilbert sighed.

Arthur glanced around the bubble to look at the others and they were taking in a deep breath. Arthur sighed, what bad could come from it? He took in a deep breath and then held it. Gilbert looked over to his side and, when Arthur's eyes followed, he saw Alfred, followed by Mathew. Arthur nearly asked what they were doing, but the bubble around them suddenly disappeared and was replaced by water and a massive pressure on top of Arthur. It came as such a shock that he let out his breath. The water was ice cold and Arthur could barely move from all of the pressure.

Suddenly, though, something grabbed onto his waist and started pulling him up…or was that down…The pressure was lightening and Arthur could start to think clearly. He was so out of breath, he just had to try and take something in, even if he was underwater. He opened his mouth, but before he could try to take in a breath, something made contact with his lips. He was about to protest, but he felt air go into his lungs and he was too shocked to do anything. He felt whatever it was leave and closed his mouth, holding onto that air.

He felt himself break the surface of the water and let that breath out and sucked in a new one. When that was done, he dared himself to open his eyes. In front of him was Alfred. He was definitely different from the last time Arthur spoke to him. He was far more breathtaking.

"A-Alfred?" Arthur sputtered. Feeling the cold water hit his hot face only confirmed his thoughts that he was blushing. "Wh-what are you-"

"Saving you, of course!" Alfred said happily.

"What are you talking about?" Arthur asked.

"You were gonna die…" Alfred muttered, looking down into the water. But his mood suddenly brightened to say, "But I saved ya!"

"There are safer ways to save someone," Arthur chuckled. "I could have drowned."

"If it makes you feel any better, my heart's been pierced by cupid. And I disdain all glittering gold. Nothing can console me-" Alfred grinned, and Arthur cut him off to finish for him.

"But my jolly sailor bold," Arthur grinned.

"Have I ever told you how much I love that song?" Alfred smiled.

"Aw," Francis sighed teasingly and Arthur turned his attention to where he heard the voice to glare at him.

"Adorable," Antonio laughed. Mathew and Gilbert were above water with them, too. Gilbert was holding Antonio up and Mathew was holding Francis up.

"Oh, shut up," Arthur snapped.

"We getting these losers to land soon?" Gilbert asked. "Because I'm pretty sure everyone's gonna notice they're gone after a while."

"Right," Alfred nodded. Before Arthur knew it, Alfred was carrying him bridal style and then they started swimming faster than Arthur thought was humanly possible.

"Why the hell do you have to carry me like this?" Arthur felt himself blushing even more.

"I think it's fun," Alfred laughed. "Besides, it brings back good memories."

"Yes, lovely memories," Arthur rolled his eyes. "I enjoy thinking about my ship sinking."

"You just don't remember the point where I kissed you," Alfred winked.

"You did what?" Arthur snapped.

"It looked like you enjoyed it," Alfred grinned.

"What?" Arthur's face was searing hot by now.

"So, are you still unsure of if you like me or not?" Alfred asked.

"I-I…" Arthur muttered and looked down.

"Do not worry," Francis chimed. "He's always been horrible at confessing his feelings."

"Shut it, frog!" Arthur snapped and Alfred laughed. Arthur looked off to the side, blushing furiously, and saw that there was a speck that morphed into a blob. Soon, that blob turned into a long line, which Arthur guessed was the coast of America.

"You _did_ want to go to land, right?" Alfred chuckled.

"It's better than being stuck in a bubble underwater," Antonio sighed.

"So you are just dropping us off on a shore?" Francis asked. "That's it?"

"Do we look like we can give you anything?" Gilbert asked.

"Je ne taime pas ce…" Francis muttered in French.

"Tu es va etre d'accord," Mathew said to him.

"Since when did you know more than English, Mattie?" Alfred looked behind him to look at Mathew.

"I, um, I know a little French…" Mathew muttered.

"Impressive," Alfred nodded towards him. Arthur noticed they were getting near a shore with rocks on it.

"Is that where you're dropping us off?" Arthur asked, curious.

"It's the closest place," Alfred shrugged. "I figured since you guys don't really have a home, you wouldn't mind where you go."

"I guess…" Arthur muttered. They were getting close to the rocks now.

"So, I just have one question for you," Alfred said quietly, probably so none of the others could hear. "Do you…do you…love me?"

They were at the rocks now, the waves coming up from the ocean spraying their faces. The others were busy getting Francis and Antonio on the rocks.

"I…" Arthur didn't know what to say. He wasn't exactly sure if he was in love with him. They had just met, but it seemed like they knew each other for ages. This was the man that saved him that time, the man with the voice that had him almost marry a sea warlock. The man that saved him from death several times, including right now. Looking into those sea blue sapphires that were his eyes…"Yes," Arthur nodded quietly.

Alfred grew a big smile on his face and wrapped Arthur into a hug. "Thank you…" Alfred muttered. Then he separated their hug and shifted Arthur so that they were face to face. And he leaned forward, pressing their lips together. Arthur didn't try to fight this time, he kissed back.

"As much as I love your boyfriend being a mermaid," Francis coughed and the two separated. "I would appreciate it if you wouldn't make out in front of us."

"Shut it, Francis," Arthur muttered. He looked down at the water, but he couldn't hide a smile growing on his face. "No one asked you."

Arthur felt himself rise slowly out of the water and looked up at Alfred as he was set down on a rock.

"I-I'm sorry…" Alfred muttered and looked away.

"Why?" Arthur asked.

"I-I have to go..." Alfred said quietly. He sniffled, like he was crying.

"Are you crying?" Gilbert asked bluntly.

"No!" Alfred snapped, looking up at him. "Heroes don't cry!"

"I'll be able to see you again, right?" Arthur asked.

Alfred shook his head. "Probably not..."

"If I'm never going to see you again," Arthur said calmly, far calmer than he expected he could make his voice out to be, Alfred looked over to him, "then you owe me another kiss." Arthur could feel himself fighting back tears, as well. He had just confessed himself to love a man, who was about to just run away into the ocean forever. The least he could ask for was a kiss.

Alfred pushed himself up so that he was leaning over the rock. "I love you, too, Arthur," Alfred smiled. Arthur forced out a smile, and then used one hand to cup Alfred's face and leaned in to press their lips together. It was a while before they separated.

"Goodbye, Alfred," Arthur could feel his voice wavering.

"Goodbye, Arthur," Alfred smiled a tiny smile. And then he turned away and dove into the water, disappearing from sight. Arthur felt a tear run down his cheek and he quickly rubbed it off with his hand. He forced himself to stand up and walk off the rock, onto the sand of the shore.

"Arthur, are you okay?" Antonio placed a hand on Arthur's shoulder. Arthur didn't look up from the ground.

"Hey, let's go to a bar or something," Francis laughed nervously. "It will make you feel better."

"I'm fine," Arthur sighed, but he walked quicker so he was ahead of the two. "I just…need to be alone…"

That proved it right there.

Arthur really did love Alfred.

* * *

**God, I feel like that was horrible... But I tried my best, so that's all that matters!**

**I love reviews, so please leave one.**

**I don't own Hetalia, the Little Mermaid, or "My Jolly Sailor Bold."**


	14. Come Back

Alfred sighed, resting his head in his hand. He was sitting on his rock next to his father's throne. Nothing was happening, like usual. So he wound up just staring at the useless pathway. He sighed again. He lost his true love forever. There was nothing much else left to do anymore. Nothing seemed interesting. Everything was just a cloud of gray.

"Hey, Alfred," Mathew poked lightly at his shoulder and Alfred glanced his way.

"Yeah?" Alfred mumbled.

"Um, wanna go check out a sunken ship I found?" Mathew tried. Alfred sighed, Mathew had been trying to get him to do something for the past couple weeks, but nothing worked.

"I'm fine," Alfred grumbled.

"So you're just gonna sit here all day?" Mathew asked, making sure to make eye contact with him. "Again?"

"Is there anything else I have to live for?" Alfred asked.

"Even Dad's not here," Mathew poked Alfred's shoulder again when he tried to look away. "You're gonna get out and you're gonna like it," Mathew grabbed onto Alfred's wrist.

"No," Alfred sighed, easily fighting against his brother and staying put. Even though he hadn't moved much in two weeks, he was still stronger than him. "I'm fine, Mattie."

"No, you're not," Mathew grabbed onto his shoulders. "You need to move."

"No, I don't," Alfred shook his hands off.

"Don't make me bring Gil in here to drag you out," Mathew glared at him.

"Go ahead," Alfred just stared back. "Doesn't mean I'm gonna be doing anything."

"Alfred, please!" Mathew pleaded. "I need you to just do something! This isn't like you! What happened to being a hero? Heroes don't sit around depressed all day."

"Then I'm no hero," Alfred muttered.

"Did I seriously just hear that?" Gilbert's voice snapped and Alfred's eyes slowly moved to look over at him. "You, Prince Alfred, 'world's biggest hero,' is just going to sit around lifeless all day? You're just going to give up without a fight?"

"Yes," Alfred nodded.

"I gave you two weeks, kid," Gilbert swam over to him. "Time to get off your lazy ass and get something done."

"You can't make me," Alfred said, but his voice was lifeless.

"Wanna bet?" Gilbert snapped. He moved Mathew away and then grabbed onto Alfred's waist, picking him up, and then slung him over his shoulder.

"Hey…" Alfred complained. "Put me down."

"Nope," Gilbert said and started swimming out of the room.

"You've got to be kidding me," Alfred whined. He saw Mathew swimming behind them. "Mattie, tell him to put me down."

"Birdie, do you know where your dad's at?" Gilbert asked casually and Mathew swam up so that he was next to him.

"I don't know," Mathew shrugged. "He might be with the crew that's cleaning up that shipwreck Ivan caused."

"Sweet, we're checking their first," Gilbert said and he started swimming.

"I don't agree with what you're doing," Alfred complained, lifelessly hitting Gilbert's back once.

"What happened to your strength?" Gilbert laughed. "I know you can hit harder than that."

"Shut up, I'm not in the mood," Alfred grumbled.

"So you're becoming a wuss now?" Gilbert scoffed. "Guess I am far more awesome than you, like I expected."

"Are not," Alfred furrowed his eyebrows and hit him again, harder.

"I guess I was treating the wrong prince like he was made of glass this whole time," Gilbert shook his head and Mathew giggled.

"Hey!" Alfred whined.

"Maybe you should be called a mermaid," Gilbert sighed. "You sure hit like a girl."

"Shut up!" Alfred hit him harder, twice

"Guess you don't really love that human, if you aren't willing to fight for him," Gilbert said.

Alfred twitched, that did it for him.

"Hey, I love Arthur! And nothing can change my mind about that!" Alfred yelled at him.

"You sure it's not loved?" Gilbert asked.

"I am positive!" Alfred hit Gilbert again, with all his strength, and he heard him grunt. "I don't care if he's a human and I'm a merman! It doesn't matter what the hell anyone says! Nothing can change my mind about the fact that I love him and I will never, _ever_ love anyone else!" The whole time, he repeatedly punched Gilbert's back over and over again, hoping that it left a bruise every time he made contact.

Gilbert grabbed onto his waist again and moved him off his shoulder and moved him in front of him. He moved his hands onto his shoulders. "You sure?" Gilbert's grin was obnoxious.

"Yes, I'm fucking sure!" Alfred snapped at him.

"Glad to see you're back, kid," Gilbert smiled, patting his shoulder. "Now go tell your dad exactly what you told me."

"What?" Alfred just realized that they had stopped swimming. He snapped his head around him and he saw the shipwreck, the ship split in two.

"It's been two weeks," Gilbert said. "It's about time you made your point."

"Is that the only reason you were insulting me?" Alfred demanded. "So you could get me to fight back?"

"Yes," Gilbert nodded. "And now my back is paying for it."

"Mattie, did you know he was going to do this?" Alfred looked over at his brother, who was holding back a giggle.

"Just a little," Mathew smiled. "I didn't know he was going to go this far, though."

"Damn good thing I did," Gilbert laughed, letting go of Alfred.

"Look, I appreciate your help, but it's not gonna work," Alfred sighed.

"Hey, do you wanna go back to moping on that rock, or do you want to get back to him?" Gilbert asked. Alfred was about to respond, but Gilbert cut him off. "The wannabe hero I knew wouldn't have given up this easily. He would have at least tried."

"Wait, 'wannabe hero?' Who said I was a wannabe hero?" Alfred demanded. "I am a hero, no questions about it."

"Prove it and be your own hero," Gilbert said. "Go and talk to your dad right now and get your man."

"But-" Alfred tried.

"Nope," Gilbert turned him around.

"I just-"

"Na-ah," Gilbert started pushing him.

"Gilbert!" Alfred yelled back at him.

"You're doing this now," Gilbert pressed.

"What if-"

"No," Gilbert snapped.

"Alfred?" Alfred froze at the sound of his father's voice. He couldn't feel Gilbert's hands on his shoulders anymore. He quickly checked behind him and neither Gil or Mattie were there. "You actually moved?" Alfred whipped his head back forward and saw his father swimming towards him.

"Yeah, I did," Alfred awkwardly rubbed the back of his head. "I-I have to tell you something…"

"Yes?" Triton asked.

"I-It's about Arthur…" Alfred muttered.

"You need to speak up, Alfred." Now Alfred knew how Mathew felt.

Alfred sucked in a deep breath, and then, while still looking down, "I love Arthur and I don't care what you think! I want to see him again, even if that means I have to become a human forever!" he confessed. Triton chuckled and Alfred looked up at him quickly. "What are you laughing at?"

"I've been waiting for you to ask," his father smiled down at him.

Alfred blinked twice. "Explain."

"I've been thinking since they 'mysteriously' disappeared," Triton laughed. "If you were willing to do that for them, I figured you really cared for them. And there is the fact they assisted with Ivan."

"You don't care he got killed?" Alfred asked.

"I know it was Arthur," Triton stated.

"So, wait," Alfred paused for a second. "You understand now?" Triton nodded. "And that means you'll let me see him again?"

"Would you care if it meant you would be a human forever?" Triton asked.

Alfred couldn't hide the smile that was growing on his face. He quickly wrapped his dad into a tight hug. "Oh, my God, I freaking love you!"

"What's going on here?" Gilbert's smug voice chimed behind them and Alfred turned around towards him.

"I'm gonna kill you, Gil," Alfred warned.

"Does this mean you're going to leave?" Mathew asked quietly.

"Yeah," Alfred swam towards him and Mathew hugged him tightly. Alfred hugged back. "Hey, I'll see you again. When you visit me on land."

"Promise?"

"I promise."

* * *

Arthur sighed, looking out at the sea. Every day, he would come to the same beach Alfred left him on and watched the ocean for an hour, or maybe more. He didn't know why he was chasing this dream that Alfred might come back, he knew it was insane. So did Antonio and Francis. He didn't know why they stayed with him, they just did.

Arthur put his hands in his pockets and walked towards the part of the shore that wasn't littered with rocks, it was just sand. He never really cared if his shoes or his pants got wet. A wave crashed into the rocks and the sea spray hit his face. Normally, it would be relaxing, but he could barely feel it.

Arthur kicked at the sand, watching as it flew up slightly. It got caught on the waves and then was dragged away into the sea. Arthur sighed again. He might just go in early today…

He turned around and slowly started walking back up the shore. But he stopped when he heard something like someone was running through the water behind him. Last time he checked, no one was there with him. No one was ever there with him. He turned around, towards it, but the thing that was running already made it to him. He felt a hand on the small of his back, pulling him towards whatever it was, and a hand on his head, pulling him in to a kiss.

Arthur's eyes widened and he almost tried to pull away, but then he saw the face that was pressed up against his. That familiar sand colored hair hanging over his forehead, the tanned skin, the familiarity of those lips…

Arthur quickly used both of his hands to grab onto the back of the head of the man in front of him and deepened the kiss. Eventually, the man separated them.

"You gonna let me breathe, dude?" he laughed and Arthur opened his eyes. It really was Alfred, right there in front of him. Arthur looked him up and down. He was wearing what looked just like what he wore on the ship, but it looked a little more fresh and new.

"A-Alfred?" Arthur's voice was shaking. He couldn't believe it.

"The one and only," Alfred winked at him.

Arthur leaned in and kissed him again. Alfred moved both of his hands to Arthur's waist and lifted him up, spinning him in a circle before setting him down.

"I've always wanted to do that," Alfred laughed when the separated. "But you're a lot heavier than I expected."

"So you have legs now, no strings attached?" Arthur raised an eyebrow. He stole a glance behind Alfred and saw that they were close to the water line.

"Yup!" Alfred nodded happily.

"So you won't lose your legs if you touch the water?" Arthur asked.

"Yeah!" Alfred said proudly.

"Then you wouldn't mind if I did this?" Arthur quickly shoved Alfred, making him fall over, into a wave that just crashed on shore.

"Hey!" Alfred laughed. "What was that for?"

"Calling me heavy," Arthur smiled.

"Is that what you do to someone you didn't think you would ever see again in your life?" Alfred asked and held his hand up. "The least you could do is help me up."

"Fine then," Arthur rolled his eyes and held onto Alfred's hand. He moved his arm so that he would pull Alfred up, but he felt something pulling on his hand, making him fall forward, on top of Alfred. Alfred quickly rolled them over, so that he was on top of Arthur.

"That's what you get for shoving me over," Alfred smiled.

"Jesus Christ, you're fat, too," Arthur chuckled as water flowed onto his face.

"Hey!" Alfred whined. "I'm just well fed!"

"Yes, that's it," Arthur rolled his eyes and sputtered when water got into his mouth. "Could you get off me now? I'm not used to water going down my throat like you are."

"Fine, dude," Alfred stood up and held out a hand. "Can I trust you not to pull me into the water?"

"Yes, you can," Arthur laughed, taking hold of the hand. Alfred pulled him up, and then pulled him close to him, hugging him. "So, you're staying?"

"Why else would I be here if I wasn't staying?" Alfred smiled.

"You never know," Arthur shrugged. "You could have struck another deal with a sea warlock."

"Nah, this deal was just with the king of the ocean," Alfred shrugged.

"Your father did this?" Arthur asked.

"He finally understood," Alfred nodded.

"Alfred?" Antonio's voice broke through their moment and Arthur glared off to the side, where Antonio was standing, wide-eyed, next to an amazed Francis.

"Mon dieu!" Francis exclaimed. "It _is_ Alfred!"

"Hey, guys," Alfred nodded towards them as they ran onto the beach to meet them. Alfred and Arthur separated, but Alfred slung his arm over Arthur's shoulders. "I didn't expect you two to still be here."

"But you expected me to?" Arthur looked over to him. "You think I was that desperate for you?"

"Yup!" Alfred nodded happily. Arthur tried to glare at him, but sighed when he couldn't do it.

"How are you here?" Francis asked.

"And you're standing in the water!" Antonio said. "What happened?"

"My dad," Alfred smiled.

"I take it you don't hate him anymore?" Antonio crossed his arms.

"How could I?" Alfred smiled and he and Arthur started walking forward. "So, we gonna get on another ship soon, are we just gonna laze on this beach all day?"

"We were waiting for Arthur to get over you before we did anything," Francis laughed.

"Well, I guess we'll just have to see where everything goes, yeah?" Alfred stopped right before they were about to step off the beach and turned around, letting go of Arthur.

Curious, Arthur turned around and looked at Alfred, he was waving towards the ocean. Arthur looked over to where he was looking, and he saw two figures in the ocean. One of them had pure white hair, the other looked just like Alfred. They were waving, too. Arthur waved back at them, smiling.

"Don't worry," Alfred smiled at Arthur. "We'll see them around."

"Let's hope so," Antonio laughed.

"Oui, that Gilbert wasn't half bad," Francis said.

"So, Arthur," Alfred pulled Arthur close to him again. Arthur blushed, by now they were in view of everyone else in the nearby town. He still wasn't quite used to the idea of being in love with a man. "Do you still love me?"

Arthur rolled his eyes. "Yes, I still love you, you twat," he smiled.

"Just checking," Alfred winked at him and pulled him in to a kiss.

* * *

**So, I learned something recently. Apparently, in the real The Little Mermaid, not the Disney version, Ariel is supposed to die. Go figure. That did not happen here, obviously, thank God.**

**However, this is the end, sorry the ending sucks, ending a story is hard...**

**I'd like to give a huge thanks to all of you who have reviewed, especially Nanami Of Falling Snow, Dragon356, and an anon, Tsuki, who all reviewed practically every chapter! I love you guys and everyone who took the time to read this story.**

**I don't own Hetalia, the Little Mermaid, or "My Jolly Sailor Bold."**


End file.
